COUNTRY  LIFE  EDUCATION 
SERIES 


Edited  by  Charles  William   Burkett,  recently  Director 

of  Experiment  Station,  Kansas  State  Agricultural 

College  j   Editor  of  American  Agriculturist 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  FARM  ANIMALS 
By  Charles  S.  Plumb,  Ohio  State  University 

PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 

By  Eugene  Davenport,  University  of  Illinois 

FUNGOUS  DISEASES  OF  PLANTS 

By  Benjamin  Minge  Duggar,  Cornell  University 

SOIL  FERTILITY  AND  PERMANENT 
AGRICULTURE 

By  Cyril  George  Hopkins,  University  of  Illinois 

PRINCIPLES  AND  PRACTICE  OF  POULTRY 
CULTURE 

By  John  Henry  Robinson,  Editor  of  Farm-Poultry 

Other  volumes  in  preparation 


BARRED   PLYMOUTH    ROCK   COCKEREL,   " CRUSADER  " 

Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts 
(Photograph  by  Schilling) 


PRINCIPLES  AND  PRACTICE  OF 
POULTRY  CULTURE 


BY 


JOHN   H.  ROBINSON 


GINN  AND  COMPANY 

BOSTON  •  NEW  YORK  •  CHICAGO  •  LONDON 


ENTERED  AT  STATIONERS'  HALL 


COPYRIGHT,  1912,  BY 
JOHN   H.  ROBINSON 


ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 


912. 


taw 


gftc  gtftenaeum 

GINN  AND  COMPANY  •  PRO- 
PRIETORS •  BOSTON  •  U.S.A. 


PREFACE 

The  method  of  treatment  adopted  in  this  book  is  the  simple, 
scientific  method,  —  that  of  presenting  essential  facts  in  logical 
order.  The  following  of  this  method  has  led  to  some  departures 
from  the  conventional  way  of  presenting  poultry  topics.  The  unity 
of  the  poultry  group  is  here  conceived  as  essential  and  arising  from 
the  nature  of  the  birds,  rather  than  as  artificial  and  relating  to  the 
purposes  for  which  they  are  used  ;  and  I  have  tried  to  give  practical 
effect  to  my  very  strong  conviction  that  permanent  poultry  culture 
must  be  a  feature  in  permanent  agriculture,  and  that  each  of  the 
common  kinds  of  poultry  has  its  peculiar  place  in  agriculture. 
Hence  the  methods  of  managing  the  different  kinds  of  poultry  are 
not  stated  separately,  as  has  been  usual,  but  topics  are  discussed 
in  their  own  appropriate  order  with  reference  to  all  the  kinds.  This 
arrangement  emphasizes  the  things  which  apply  alike  to  all  kinds 
of  poultry,  and  makes  it  easy  to  show  that  good  practice  is  simple 
and  that  the  same  treatment  will  usually  answer,  in  whole  or  in 
part,  for  several  different  kinds,  thus  lightening  the  work  of  the 
poultry  keeper.  It  is  believed  also  that  by  this  arrangement  of 
matter  the  student  or  reader  is  given,  with  instruction  in  the  details 
of  methods,  a  more  comprehensive  view  of  the  subject  as  a  whole 
than  by  the  usual  mode  of  presenting  it. 

To  the  best  of  my  ability  the  book  gives  the  consensus  of  author- 
itative opinion  of  a  many-sided  subject.  In  appraising  this  con- 
sensus I  have  had  regard  alike  to  practical  authority,  expressed  in 
the  views  and  practice  of  good  poultrymen,  and  to  scientific  authority, 
found  in  the  bulletins  and  other  papers  of  those  instructors  and 
investigators  who  have  been  foremost  in  reducing  to  order  the 
confused  mass  of  common  knowledge  of  poultry  culture.  To  the 
practical  poultrymen  and  fanciers  I  am  most  indebted  for  facts ;  to 
the  instructors  and  investigators,  for  interpretations  of  facts  and  for 


*-%  /-»  n^  r*  n  r* 


viii  POULTRY  CULTURE 

ideas  and  suggestions  as  to  the  presentation  of  the  subject  in  such 
a  way  as  to  meet  the  requirements  of  formal  instruction. 

To  give  credit,  in  the  proper  connection,  to  each  of  the  many 
whose  experiences  and  opinions  have  contributed  something  to  a 
work  which  represents  a  life  interest  in  poultry  and  more  than  a 
score  of  years  of  intimate  business  and  professional  acquaintance 
with  poultry  culture  would  be  impossible.  So  it  has  seemed  best  to 
make  few  direct  references  in  the  text,  but  to  give  in  the  appendix 
a  classified  list  of  the  literature  of  the  subject. 

The  illustrations  not  credited  to  others  are  by  the  author. 
Although  many  of  the  photographs  and  drawings  were  made  for 
this  book,  the  elaborate  scheme  of  illustration  adopted  was  practi- 
cable only  because  I  already  had  a  large  private  collection  of  pho- 
tographs from  which  to  select,  and  because  I  had  access  to  the 
files  of  photographs  which  had  been  used  in  Farm- Poultry .  Those 
from  the  latter  source  the  publishers  have  kindly  allowed  me  to 
use,  with  this  general  acknowledgment. 

JOHN  H.  ROBINSON 

READING,  MASSACHUSETTS 


CONTENTS 


INTRODUCTION      .   V    •••••*  ......... 

Need  of  instruction  —  Scope  of  instruction,  i  —  Limits  of  instruc- 
tion, 2  —  Conditions  of  student  practice,  3  —  Collateral  reading  — 
Technical  terms  and  definitions,  4 


PART  I 

THE   POULTRY  INDUSTRY 


I.    NATURE  AND  USES  OF  POULTRY 5 

Classes  of  domestic  birds  —  Kinds  of  poultry  —  Common  char- 
acters of  poultry,  5  —  The  elementary  poultry  character,  7  — 
Values  of  poultry,  8  —  Properties  of  eggs,  10  —  Services  of  poultry 
in  agriculture  —  Recreation  in  poultry  culture,  1 1 

II.  EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY 12 

Antiquity  of  poultry  culture  —  Pre-modern  poultry  culture,  12 
—  Persistence  of  primitive  conditions  explained  —  Quality  of 
common  poultry,  13  —  Improved  native  stocks  —  Interest  in 
distinctive  types,  14  —  First  effects  of  acquaintance  with  improved 
breeds,  15  —  Development  of  the  American  type,  16 — Artificial 
incubation,  17 — Exhibitions  —  Poultry  literature  of  the  early 
period,  18  —  Modern  poultry  literature  —  Journalism,  19  —  Books, 
20  —  Instruction  and  investigation,  21  —  Individual  influence,  22  — 
Trade  spirit,  23 

III.    ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 24 

First  statistics  of  poultry,  24  —  Present  value  of  poultry  products 
in  the  United  States,  25  —  The  poultry  industry,  26  —  Trend  of 
development  —  Natural  division  of  the  poultry  industry  —  Limita- 
tions on  development,  27  —  Permanent  poultry  culture  a  branch 
of  agriculture,  28  —  Poultry  culture  a  necessary  feature  in  agri- 
culture, 29  —  Poultry  culture  a  diversified  industry  —  Branches 
of  poultry  culture,  30  —  Egg  farming,  32  —  Factory  methods  in- 
poultry  culture,  33  —  Farm  methods,  35  —  The  Petaluma  district, 
40  —  Broiler  farming,  43  —  Roaster  growing,  45  —  Duck  growing, 
48  —  Goose  growing,  54  —  Turkey  growing,  58  —  Other  kinds  of 
poultry  —  Fancy  poultry,  59  —  Profitable  combinations  in  poultry 
culture,  6 1  —  Combinations  with  poultry  —  Supply  and  demand,  62 


x  POULTRY  CULTURE 

PART  II 

PRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

IV.    THE  POULTRY  KEEPER'S  PROBLEMS    .     .     .     .     .     .     .       64 

Common  tasks — Hard  problems,  64  —  Relation  of  natural  con- 
ditions to  poultry  problems  —  Differences  between  practical 
and  theoretical  problems,  66  —  The  beginner's  most  difficult 
problem,  67 

V.    POULTRY   TYPES    AND    THEIR    RELATIONS    TO    OBJECTS, 

CONDITIONS,  AND  METHODS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING    .       69 

Type  denned  —  Type  and  breed,  69  —  Breed  type  —  Breed  divi- 
sions —  Breed  relations  —  Economic  classification  of  fowls,  70  — 
Class  properties,  71 — Necessary  differences  in  conditions  and 
methods,  72 

VI.    PROBLEMS  OF  LOCATION   .   ......     .  '..    .     .     .     ..     74 

Phases  of  the  question  of  location  —  Climate,  74  —  Special 
features — Soils  and  drainage,  76  —  Sunlight — Ventilation  — 
Markets,  77  —  Transportation,  78 

VII.    SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING      .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .       79 

Definitions  —  General  methods  —  Essence  of  system,  79  —  Ordi- 
nary farm  methods —  Extensive  systems,  80  —  The  Rfrode  Island 
colony  system,  81 — Ordinary  town  methods,  84  —  Intensive 
systems,  85  —  Comparison  of  extensive  and  intensive  systems,  87 
—  Combining  advantages  of  the  two  systems,  91  —  Temporary 
range  —  Weakest  point  in  intensive  systems,  94 

VIII.    YARDS  AND  FENCES     .     .     .     ,     .     .     .     .     ...     .     .       95 

Yards  a  necessary  evil,  95  —  Height  of  fence,  96  —  Area  of  yard, 
97  —  Alternating  yards  —  Fence  material,  98  —  Openings  in 
fences,  100 

IX.    COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY      .    ..     »     •     •     •     102 

Prime  considerations  in  shelters,  103  —  Principal  requirements 
for  comfort —  Earliest  form  of  poultry  shelter  —  Simplest  shelter 
made  for  poultry,  104  —  Poultry  in  owner's  dwelling  —  Tight 
houses,  108  —  Ventilation  in  tight  houses  —  Beginning  of  the 
fresh-air  movement,  112  —  Houses  with  open  fronts  —  No  best 
house,  114  —  Floor  dimensions,  116  —  Height  of  structures  — 


CONTENTS  xi 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

Depth  of  structures,  118  —  Standard-size  poultry-house  unit  — 
Length  of  poultry  houses,  119  —  Styles  of  roof,  121 — Walls 

—  Floors,   125  —  Eccentric  features   to  be  avoided  —  Materials 
for  poultry  structures,  126 —  Quality  of  construction,  127  —  Pres- 
ervation of  structures  —  Structures  for  different  kinds  of  poultry, 
I2o,  —  Ancient  and  modern  coops,  131  —  Coops  for  indoor  brood- 
ers   and   growing   chicks,    132  —  Small   houses,   stationary   and 
portable,  134  —  Colony  poultry  houses,  136  —  Cloth-front  houses, 
137  —  Late  styles  of  poultry  houses,  141  —  Long  poultry  houses, 
!45  —  Stages   in   construction   of  a  long   poultry   house,   148  — 
Fattening  and  killing  houses  —  Brooder  houses,  149  —  Cockerel 
house,  153  —  Poultry  houses  on  hillsides,  154 

X.    POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 155 

Roosts,  156 — Droppings  boards,  158  —  Roosting  closets,  159  — 
Nests,  1 60  —  Feed  troughs,  163  —  Feed  hoppers,  165  —  Drinking 
vessels  —  Drinking  fountains,  166 — Dusting  boxes  —  Common 
tools,  167  —  Cooking  apparatus  —  Food  mixers,  168  —  Bone  cut- 
ters —  Hay  cutters. —  Root  cutters,  169  —  Carts  for  poultry  work, 
170  —  Egg  testers  —  Nest  eggs  —  Transportation  on  the  poultry 
plant,  171 

XL    NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY     .     *     .     .     .  ^ .     .     .     .     .     .     172 

Nutritive  requirements  —  Nutritive  organs,  172  —  Differences  in 
beaks  and  crops  —  Natural  foods  and  feeding  habits  of  poultry, 
175  —  Common  poultry  foods  —  Composition  of  foods,  178  — 
Nutrient  ratio,  180 —  Expression  of  nutritive  values,  181 

XII.    POULTRY  FOODS   .    ..    ,..;>.  \     .     ....     .     .     .     .     183 

Wheat,  183  —  Wheat  screenings  —  Low-grade  flour —  Middlings, 
184  —  Bran  —  Stale  Bread  —  Corn,  185  —  Corn  meal,  186  —  Corn 
bran  and  corn  middlings  —  Corn  and  cob  meal  —  Hominy  meal 

—  Gluten  meal  and  gluten  feed  —  Whole  oats,  187  —  Oatmeal 

—  Oat  bran   and  oat  feed — Oat  middlings  —  Sprouted  oats  — 
Barley,  188  —  Barley  screenings  —  Barley  meal — Malt  sprouts, 
Dried  brewer's  grains  —  Rye,    189  —  Mixed   mill   feeds,    190  — 
Buckwheat  —  Buckwheat    by-products  —  Rice,    191  —  Sorghum 
seed  —  Broom-corn   seed  —  Flaxseed   and   cotton   seed,    192  — 
Ground  linseed — Linseed  meal — Cottonseed  by-products,  193 
Peas  and  beans  —  Miscellaneous  seeds,  194  —  Green  foods,  195 

—  Ensilage  —  Clovers  and  alfalfa,  196  —  Clover  meal  and  alfalfa 
meal  —  Potatoes,  197  —  Beets  —  Turnips  —  Onions,  198  —  Apples 

—  Green  bones  —  Meat  by-products,  199  —  Fresh  fish,  200  —  Fish 
scrap  —  Shellfish  —  Milk,     201  —  Cheese  —  Milk     albumin  — 
Eggs,  202  —  Mineral  foods,  203  —  Dry  bone  —  Oyster  shells,  204 

—  Charcoal,  205 


xii  POULTRY  CULTURE 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XIII.  RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  .     ....  :\.     .     206 

A  ration  defined  —  A  balanced  ration,  206  —  A  balanced  ration 
an  average  ration,  207  —  Common  practice  in  feeding  —  How 
methods  of  feeding  are  determined,  208  —  Rations  for  special 
purposes,  210  —  Different  rations  for  different  kinds  of  poultry, 
211  —  Same  ration  for  young  and  old  poultry  of  the  same  kind 

—  Forcing  rations,  212  —  Special  preparation  of  food  —  Mashes, 
214 —  Standard  mashes,  217  —  Popular  standard  mashes  approxi- 
mately balanced  rations  —  Errors  in  use  of  wet  mashes  —  Dry 
mashes,  218  — Dangers  in  use  of  dry  mashes,  220  —  Rations  for 
fowls,  221 — Maine   Experiment   Station  rations,  224  —  Ontario 
Experiment   Station  rations,   228  —  West   Virginia  Experiment 
Station  ration  —  Kansas  Experiment  Station  rations,  229  —  Cor- 
nell   Experiment    Station    rations,    230  —  Rations    for    turkeys, 
peafowls,  guineas,  and  pheasants,  233  —  Rations  for  ducks,  235 

—  Rations  for  geese,  237 

XIV.  INCUBATION .".,'".    ...     ,..'•.     .     238 

Relation  of  incubation  to  other  operations  —  The  egg,  238  —  A 
fertile  egg,  239  —  Function  of  heat  in  incubation,  240  —  Antiquity 
of  artificial  methods  —  The  problem  in  artificial  incubation,  241 

—  Value  of  both  methods  of  incubation  —  Hatching  by  natural 
methods  —  Broodiness,  242  —  System  in  natural  incubation,  243 
—  Nests  for  sitting  hens,   244  —  Nest  material  —  Selection   of 
eggs,  245  —  Number  of  eggs  in  setting — Keeping  hens  confined 
to  nests,  246 — Food  of  the  sitting  hen  —  Cleanliness  —  Testing 
eggs,  248  —  Period  of  incubation  —  Effects  of  chilling  on  eggs, 
250  —  Treatment  of  eggs  at  hatching  time,  251  — Helping  birds 
out  of  the  shell  —  Conditions  of  good  hatching,  252  —  Hatching 
by  artificial   methods  —  Responsibility   of   the    operator,   253  — 
Selection  of  an  incubator,  254  —  Manufacturers'  directions  for 
operating  incubators,  255— Selection  of  eggs  for  artificial' incu- 
bation, 257  —  Preliminary  regulation  of  heat  —  Routine  work  of 
operation,  258  —  Factors  in  artificial  incubation,  259  —  Source  of 
moisture   in   incubation  —  Use   of  ventilation,   260  —  Measuring 
ventilation,  262  —  Management  of  incubator  at  hatching  —  Ac- 
counting for  results,  263 — Causes  of  poor  hatches,  264  —  Com- 
mon errors  in  operating  incubators,  265 

XV.   GROWING  POULTRY 266 

Growth  a  natural  process — Constitution  inherited  —  Initial  se- 
lection, 266  —  Preservation  of  vitality  in  young  poultry,  267  — 
Overcrowding  the  great  cause  of  trouble  in  growing  poultry, 
268  —  What  constitutes  overcrowding,  269  —  Overcrowding 
mostly  unnecessary,  274  —  Warmth  the  first  requirement  — 
Brooding  temperatures,  275 — Regulation  of  heat  in  artificial 
brooding,  276 — Methods  of  artificial  brooding,  277  —  Lamp- 
heated  brooders — Pipe  brooder  systems,  278  —  Temperature 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

in  artificial  brooding — Regulation  of  temperature  in  brooders, 
280 — Period  of  artificial  brooding — Protection  from  enemies, 
282  —  Protection  from  parasites,  283  —  Growth  the  test  of  the 
work  of  the  grower  —  Rate  of  growth,  284  —  Separation  of  sexes 
while  growing — Separation  according  to  age  and  size,  287  — 
Disturbances  to  be  avoided,  288 

XVI.    EGG  PRODUCTION 289 

Egg  production  distinguished  from  reproduction  —  Reproductive 
organs  of  the  female,  289  —  Laying  normally  follows  completion 
of  growth,  290  —  Causes  of  retarded  laying,  291 — Conditions  of 
egg  production,  293  —  Duration  of  laying  periods,  297  —  Molting 
and  egg  production  —  Variability  of  egg  yields,  298  —  Selection 
of  stock  for  laying,  299  —  Effect  of  age  on  production,  300 

XVII.    FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 301 

Fattening  a  finishing  process  —  Common  practice,  301  —  Simple 
methods  of  fattening,  302  —  Causes  of  failure  in  finishing  by 
ordinary  methods,  305 — Special  fattening  plants  using  ordinary 
methods,  306 — Special  finishing  methods  —  Crate  feeding,  307 

—  Cramming,  308  —  Caponizing,  309 

XVIII.    PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  FOR  MARKET    .     311 

Dressed  poultry  —  Fasting — Killing,  311 — Wringing  the  neck 

—  Cutting  off  the  head,  312  —  Sticking,  313  —  Scalding,  314  — 
Dry  picking,  316 —  Scalding  and  dry  picking  compared —  Market 
requirements  as  to  picking,  318  —  Importance  of  proper  cooling, 
319 — Shaping  —  Grading,  320  —  Packing,  321  —  Standard  sizes 
of  boxes,  322  —  Feathers  —  Shipping  live  poultry  —  Sorting  and 
grading,  324  — Eggs  — Cleaning  eggs,  325  — Sorting  eggs  for 
color  —  Grading  eggs  for  size,  326  —  Egg  cases  and  boxes,  327 

XIX.    MARKETING  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 329 

Poultry  keepers  and  middlemen,  329  —  Collection  and  distribu- 
tion of  poultry  products  —  Eggs,  330  —  Live  poultry  —  Dressed 
poultry —  Relative  advantages  of  selling  poultry  alive  and  dressed, 
333  _  Feathers,  334  —  Manure  —  Cooperative  selling  of  poultry 
products,  335 

XX.  PREVENTION  AND  TREATMENT  OF  DISEASE  AND  VICE  .  337 
Hygiene  and  sanitation,  337  —  Causes  of  disease  —  Constitutional 
causes  of  disease  —  Dietetic  causes  of  disease,  338  —  Environ- 
mental causes  of  disease  —  Contagious  diseases  —  Symptoms  of 
disease,  339 —  Special  symptoms  plain  to  ordinary  observation — 
General  treatment  of  disease,  340  —  Injuries  —  Internal  parasites, 
341  — External  parasites  —  Vices,  342 


xiv  POULTRY  CULTURE 


PART    III 

REPRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXI.    TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS    .     .     .     .     344 

Original  type   of  the  domestic  fowl,  344  —  Types   of  domestic 
fowls,  346  —  Game  types,  347  —  Aseel,  348  —  English  Game,  349 

—  Cornish  Indian,  350  —  Malay,  351  —  Laying  types,  352  —  Lay- 
ing breeds,  353  —  Mediterranean  laying  types,  3  54  —  Italian  stocks, 
355 —  Spanish  section  of  Mediterranean  class,  362  —  Other  races 
of  the  Mediterranean  type,  367  —  Mid-European  laying  types,  368 

—  Primitive  crested  types,  375  —  European  meat  types,  376  — 
English  meat  types,  377  —  French  and  Belgian  meat  types,  380 

—  The  Asiatic  meat  type,  384  —  Divisions  of  the  Asiatic  meat 
type,    387  —  General-purpose    types,    394  —  Earliest    American 
types,  397  —  Origin  of  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock,  398  —  The 
Wyandottes,  406  —  Rhode    Island    Reds,  413  —  The    Orping- 
tons, 416  —  Continental  European  general-purpose  types,  423  — 
Deformed  types,  424  —  Bantams,  425 


XXII.    TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  AND  PHEASANTS     .     .     429 
Turkeys,  429  —  Peafowls,  436  —  Guineas  —  Pheasants,  437 

XXIII.  TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 438 

The  common  wild  duck,  438  —  Common  domestic  ducks  —  Im- 
proved races  of  ducks  —  Meat  types,  439  —  Laying-type  ducks, 
447  —  Common  ornamental  ducks,  448 

XXIV.  GEESE  AND  SWANS .:     .     .     .     .     .     449 

Economic  races  of  geese  —  Common  geese,  449  —  Improved 
breeds  of  geese,  451  — Asiatictypes  of  geese,  453  —  The  American 
Wild  Goose,  457  —  Ornamental  geese  —  Swans,  458 

XXV.    PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING  ....     459 

Kinds  of  reproduction  —  Likeness  in  asexual  reproduction  — 
Relations  of  body  and  germ,  459  —  Beginning  of  variation  —  The 
function  of  sex,  461  —  Likeness  in  sexual  reproduction,  462  — 
Relation  of  sex  to  inheritance,  463  —  Prepotency,  464  —  Pre- 
potency and  selection  —  Transmission  of  prepotency,  466  — 
Present  and  latent  characters —  Alternate  inheritance,  reversion, 
and  atavism,  467  —  Laws  of  heredity  —  Gallon's  law,  468  — 
Mendel's  law,  469  —  Correlation  of  characters,  471 


CONTENTS  xv 


XXVI.    APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  POULTRY  BREEDING     475 

Adaptability  of  poultry  breeding — Length  of  life  and  breeding 
value,  476  —  Relative  value  of  male  and  female,  477  —  Selection, 
478  —  Poultry  standards,  479  —  Relative  value  of  characters  in 
selection,  480 —  Systems  of  selection,  481  — Essential  characters 

—  Substantial    characters,    482  —  Superficial    characters,    483 

Collective  selection  and  compensation  in  breeding,  484  —  Inbreed- 
ing and  line  breeding —  Close  breeding,  485  —  The  rule  of  good 
practice,  486 —  Danger  of  new  blood  —  Age  and  breeding'quality, 
487  —  Ratio  of  females  to  males,  488  —  Period  of  fertility,  489  — 
Regulation  of  sex,  490  —  Mating  systems  —  Details  of  matings, 
491  —  Mating  for  egg  production,  492  —  Mating  for  table  poultry, 
495  —  Selection  for  shape  in  mating  Standard  poultry,  504  — 
Color  matings  of  poultry,  507 


PART   IV 

THE   POULTRY   FANCY 

XXVII.    POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS 535 

Primary  poultry  exhibitions,  535  —  Modern  poultry  exhibitions, 
536  —  Educational  aspects  of  exhibitions,  537  —  Nature  of  corn- 
petition,  538  —  Financing  a  show,  539  —  Management  of  a  show, 
540  —  Quality  of  exhibits  —  Judges,  541  — Methods  of  judging  — 
Classification,  542  —  Sweepstakes  prizes  —  Special  exhibits,  548 

—  Balancing   exhibits  —  Practical  exhibits,   549  —  Suggestions 
for  improving  shows,  550  —  Institutes  at  poultry  shows,  552  — 
College  poultry  exhibitions,  553 

XXVIII.    FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY    .     .     .     .     .     .     554 

Selecting  for  exhibition,  554  —  Conditioning,  555  —  Grooming 
and  faking,  557  —  Ethics  of  conditioning — Details  of  artificial 
fitting,  560  —  Shipment  to  shows,  563  —  Care  of  birds  at  shows  — 
Returning  birds  from  shows,  564 

XXIX.   JUDGING 566 

Judging  defined  —  Objects  of  judging,  566 —  Methods  of  judging, 
567  —  Factors  in  score-card  judging,  568  —  Limitations  of  the 
score  card,  569  —  Use  of  score  cards,  571  —  Uniformity  in  judging 

—  Recognition  of  utility  values   in   judging  exhibition  poultry 

—  Judging  poultry  products,  574 


xvi  POULTRY  CULTURE 


CHAPTER 


PAGE 


XXX.    THE  TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS     .   *.     576 

Composite  character  of  the  trade,  576  —  Values  in  pure-bred 
poultry  and  eggs,  577  —  Profits  from  fancy  poultry  —  Peculiarities 
of  the  trade,  578  —  Confidence  the  basis  of  trade,  579  —  Advertis- 
ing, 580  —  Correspondence  —  Terms  and  obligation,  581  —  Scales 
of  prices,  583  — Packing  and  shipping,  585 

BIBLIOGRAPHY.     £   .     .     .     ".     .     .     .     .     .     •     .-,'•     ..     •     •     587 

INDEX >     . 597 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


INTRODUCTION 

Need  of  instruction.  The  practice  of  poultry  culture  is  an  art  or 
a  craft  or  a  combination  of  art  and  craft  according  to  the  purpose 
for  which  it  is  pursued  and  the  taste  and  skill  of  those  engaged  in 
it.  A  workman  may  attain  great  proficiency  in  many  operations 
merely  through  skill  in  imitation.  Such  a  workman,  however, 
must  work  always  after  a  model  or  under  the  direction  of  one 
familiar  with  all  phases  of  his  art  or  craft  and  thoroughly  under- 
standing its  principles.  In  any  enterprise  engaging  large  numbers 
of  people,  only  a  small  proportion  of  these  need  be  qualified  to 
oversee  and  direct  the  work ;  but  as  the  number  of  persons 
engaged  diminishes,  the  proportion  understanding  the  processes 
involved  and  their  relations  must  increase,  until,  in  such  occupa- 
tions as  farming  and  housekeeping,  each  husbandman  and  house- 
wife must  be  able  to  do  and  to  direct  the  doing  of  a  variety  of 
operations,  adapting  and  adjusting  all  to  the  general  result  sought. 

The  relation  of  this  fact  to  agricultural  and  technical  education 
has  not  been  sufficiently  emphasized.  Considering  it  here  only  in 
its  application  to  poultry  culture,  it  is  plain  that  a  general  knowl- 
edge of  the  subject  is  as  necessary  and  as  useful  to  one  whose 
plans  contemplate  perhaps  the  maintenance  of  a  flock  of  a  few 
hundred  fowls  on  the  farm  as  to  one  who  intends  to  undertake 
operations  on  a  large  scale.  Both  require  the  same  preparation,  as 
far  as  preparation  can  be  given  by  book  and  class  instruction. 

Scope  of  instruction.  The  subject  includes  a  great  variety  of 
topics.  An  accurate  general  knowledge  of  the  subject  requires 
such  familiarity  with  all  these  topics  that  the  relations  of  the 
various  phenomena  of  poultry  culture  will  be  promptly  recognized 
and  effects  estimated  with  approximate  correctness  whenever  there 


a*-V  'POULTRY  CULTURE 

is  occasion  to  consider  them.  It  is  from  inability  to  do  this  that 
poultry  keepers  who  have  become  proficient  in  a  special  line 
carried  on  under  particular  conditions  so  often  make  serious  mis- 
takes when  conditions  change  or  when  they  make  departures  from 
methods  with  which  they  are  familiar.  As  it  is  not  possible  for  a 
student  during  the  period  of  a  course  of  instruction,  or  even  in 
some  years  of  practice,  to  acquire  such  acquaintance  with  all  phases 
of  the  subject  empirically,  a  textbook  must  so  present  the  subject 
that  historical  fact  and  description  and  discussion  of  materials  and 
methods  will,  as  far  as  possible,  compensate  for  lack  of  experience. 
Thus  a  textbook  must  especially  emphasize  many  things  that  do 
not  strongly  appeal  to  the  novice  most  interested  in  what  he  can 
immediately  put  into  practice. 

The  limits  of  instruction.  ^The  quantity  of  theory  of  this  subject 
which  one  may  assimilate  and  the  rate  at  which  principles  may  be 
mastered  vary  with  the  nature  of  the  matter  as  well  as  with  the 
preparation  and  capacity  of  the  student. 

Thus  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  principles  of  poultry-house 
construction  may  be  acquired  from  books  alone  in  a  comparatively 
short  time,  and  with  knowledge  so  acquired  a  person  with  a  little 
skill  in  carpentry  may  design  and  build  a  house  in  every  respect 
as  good  as  any  experienced  poultryman  would  make,  provided 
always  that  the  principles  are  understood  and  correctly  applied.  But 
in  feeding,  a  working  knowledge  of  principles  is  rarely,  if  ever, 
acquired  without  practice.  Practice  in  feeding  sufficient  to  assist 
to  a  good  understanding  of  principles  can  be  had  in  a  few  months 
or  even  in  a  few  weeks.  In  such  matters  as  breeding,  real  practice 
cannot  be  given  in  connection  with  courses  of  instruction.  Long- 
course  students  who  are  familiar  with  the  general  principles  of 
breeding  and  their  application  to  domestic  animals  should  have  no 
difficulty  in  understanding  their  applications  to  poultry.  The  short- 
course  student  who  lacks  this  preparation,  and  who  has  had  no  ex- 
perience in  breeding,  gets  at  best  but  a  limited  appreciation  of 
principles  from  the  condensed  statement  of  them  appropriate  in 
a  general  treatise  on  poultry.  The  student  at  home  is  even  more 
heavily  handicapped.  As  a  rule  such  an  understanding  of  the 
principles  of  breeding  as  every  breeder  should  have  is  only  acquired 
after  thorough  study  and  long  practice. 


INTRODUCTION 

o 

The  three  cases  mentioned  are  representative  of  classes  of  topics 
in  which  book  instruction  alone,  even  when  insufficient,  may  be  of 
considerable  value  without  practice.  The  practice  of  poultry  culture 
includes  also  many  operations  (as  killing  and  dressing  poultry, 
caponizing,  etc.)  difficult  to  describe  in  words  even  when  de- 
scriptions are  supplemented  with  illustrations.  Actual  skill  in  these 
is  not,  however,  essential  to  a  general  knowledge  of  the  subject. 

Conditions  of  student  practice.  In  an  agricultural  college  or 
school,  students  are  given  practice  under  the  supervision  of  an  in- 
structor. As  a  rule  the  amount  of  actual  practice  by  each  student 
is  no  more  (often  less)  than  he  would  have  at  home  with  a  small 
flock  ;  but  each  student  may  observe  the  practice  of  other  students 
and  benefit  by  the  instructor's  suggestions  to  all.  Students  at 
these  institutions  have  the  further  advantage  of  observation  of  the 
work  at  the  permanent  plant  of  the  department,  conducted  usually 
by  a  skillful  manager  assisted  by  advanced  students.  As  it  is  not 
generally  feasible  to  make  practice  correspond  chronologically  with 
the  work  in  the  classroom,  much  of  it  is  at  first  done  by  direction, 
just  as  it  would  be  on  a  poultry  plant  where  formal  instruction  was 
not  given. 

Those  who  use  this  book  in  connection  with  home  practice  will 
find  it  a  good  plan  to  read  it  in  order  and  then  give  special  atten- 
tion to  topics  related  to  the  work  of  the  season.  The  amount  of 
practice  will  depend,  of  course,  on  the  extent  of  their  operations. 
It  is  well  to  remember  that  if  work  is  projected  on  a  scale  out  of 
proportion  to  knowledge  and  skill,  the  cost  of  practice  (through 
losses)  may  be  far  beyond  its  value.  Also,  while  there  is  a  certain 
benefit  to  be  derived  from  unsuccessful  effort  and  unprofitable 
experience,  it  is  of  an  indefinite  and  rather  negative  quality. 

The  student  at  work  for  a  successful  poultry  keeper  has  the  best 
of  opportunities  for  practice  and  observation.  This  is  true,  though 
his  employer  or  superintendent  has  a  narrow  view  of  conditions 
and  methods  beyond  his  own  experience,  and  though  the  methods 
used  are  at  points  defective.  It  may  be  accepted  as  a  certainty  that 
wherever  success  with  poultry  is  continuous,  most  of  the  essentials 
of  good  practice  are  observed. 

The  student  who  learns,  or  has  good  cause  to  suppose,  that  a 
poultry  plant  on  which  he  is  engaged  is  maintained  from  other 


4  POULTRY  CULTURE 

sources  than  the  annual  income  from  poultry  will,  as  a  rule,  find  it 
to  his  advantage  to  leave  it ;  for  he  is  not  likely  to  learn  there  to 
do  a  profitable  day's  work  in  a  day,  and  he  is  likely  to  acquire 
habits  of  work  and  an  attitude  toward  his  work  which  permanently 
impair  his  efficiency. 

Collateral  reading.  Only  carefully  selected  standard  books  and 
papers  should  be  used.  Indiscriminate  reading  of  poultry  literature 
is  a  hindrance  oftener  than  a  help.  The  fictions  of  poultry  culture 
are  mostly  plausible  and  generally  more  alluring  than  the  facts, 
and  the  usual  result  of  much  reading  in  advance  of  a  thorough 
grounding  in  principles  is  an  accumulation  of  obsolete  and  imprac- 
ticable ideas.  The  danger  of  this  is  greatest  to  the  independent 
student,  who  lacks  the  opportunity  of  the  college  student  to  refer 
to  instructors  for  opinions  on  matters  which  attract  his  attention  as 
he  reads.  In  the  present  state  of  knowledge  of  the  subject  it 
cannot  be  expected  that  even  those  who  may  be  classed  as  good 
authorities  will  agree  at  all  points,  but  the  seeming  disagreements 
of  authorities  are  often  due  to  partial  statements,  and  disappear 
when  a  full  statement  is  made.  On  the  whole  there  is  little  of 
direct  importance  to  a  novice  in  poultry  culture  about  which 
authorities  are  not  substantially  agreed. 

Technical  terms  and  definitions.  These  have  hitherto  been 
given  scant  attention  by  writers  on  poultry.  Most  of  the  terms 
have  been  taken  from  common  usage  and  are  generally  very  loosely 
used.  Many  terms  constantly  used  in  a  technical  sense  have  been 
neither  defined  nor  applied  with  precision  by  writers  on  the  sub- 
ject. In  this  book  such  terms  as  require  definition  will  be  defined 
either  in  the  text  or  in  the  footnotes,  when  first  used,  and  each 
term  used  thereafter  only  in  accordance  with  the  definition. 


PART  I.    THE   POULTRY  INDUSTRY 

CHAPTER  I 
NATURE  AND  USES  OF  POULTRY 

Classes  of  domestic  birds.1  Birds  in  domestication  are  divided 
according  to  their  relations  to  men  into  three  general  classes  : 
Poultry,  Pigeons,  and  'Cage  Birds.  This  book  is  concerned  with 
pigeons  and  cage  birds  only  in  so  far  as  discussion  of  the  con- 
trasting characters  of  poultry  and  the  other  two  classes  serves  to 
illustrate  the  nature  and  emphasize  the  usefulness  of  poultry. 

Kinds  of  poultry.  The  word  "  poultry"2  is  the  name  of  a 
group  of  domestic  birds  so  different  in  some  respects  that  from  a 
naturalist's  standpoint  their  inclusion  in  one  group  seems  arbitrary 
and  artificial,  warranted  perhaps  by  convenience  but  not  justified 
on  any  scientific  principle.  Besides  the  more  familiar  kinds,  as  to 
the  position  of  which  in  this  group  there  is  no  disagreement,  a  few 
others  not  so  well  known  are  included  in  it  by  authorities  on  poul- 
try culture.  The  group  as  thus  made  up  includes  fowls,1  turkeys, 
guineas,  peafowls,  pheasants,  ostriches,  ducks,  geese,  and  swans. 

Common  characters  of  poultry.  Birds  of  the  poultry  group  are 
alike  in  the  several  characteristics  which  determine  adaptability  to, 
and  a  high  degree  of  usefulness  in,  domestication. 

I .  They  are  terrestrial  in  habit,  —  some  naturally,  others  as  a 
result  of  modifications  of  structure  under  domestication.  Fowls, 
turkeys,  guineas,  peafowls,  and  pheasants  are  land  birds  with  no 
power  of  sustained  flight.  The  aquatic  habit  of  ducks  and  geese  of 

1  Bird  is  the  generic  term  applying  to  all  feathered  creatures.    Fowl,  which 
once  had  as  wide  significance,  is  now  applied  to  the  most  common  kind  of  domes- 
tic bird,  —  to  cocks  and  hens,  and  in  dead  poultry  especially  to  hens. 

2  The  term  applies  to  living  birds  and  also  to  their  flesh  as  food  for  man.   It  is 
properly  collective  in  meaning,  for  though  used  to  refer  to  a  single  kind  of  birds, 
when  so  used  it  does  riot  identify  that  kind,  but  merely  indicates  that  it  is  one  of 
the  several  kinds  comprised  in  the  poultry  group. 

5 


6  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  species  that  have  been  domesticated,  though  conspicuous,  is 
not  their  principal  habit.  They  are  essentially  land  birds.  Ducks 
and  geese  in  their  natural  state  are  also  aerial  in  habit,  though  the 
power  of  sustained  flight  seems  to  be  used  only  for  purpose  of 
migration.  In  domestication  ducks  and  geese  within  a  few  genera- 
tions lose  the  power  of  flight  to  such  an  extent  that  they  are  the 
most  easily  restrained  of  all  domestic  creatures. 

2.  They  are  omnivorous  feeders,  like  man,  and  hence  may  be 
fed  largely  on  food  wasted  by  man  (in  manufacture  as  well  as  in  con- 
sumption) and  on  foods  wasted  by  or  not  available  for  the  larger 
domestic  animals.    The  different  kinds  of  poultry  vary  in  the  pro- 
portions of  different  kinds  of  food  which  they  normally  take.    This 
is  of  further  advantage  to  man,  as  will  be  shown  in  Chapter  XI. 

3.  They  are  docile  in  disposition  and  readily  adapt  themselves 
to  the  conditions  of  life  which  domestication  imposes.   Of  the  many 
kinds  of  birds  valuable  for  food  purposes  it  is  significant  that  only 
five  are  commonly  found  in  a  state  of  domestication  :  four  kinds  of 
poultry  (fowls,  turkeys,  ducks,  geese),  and  pigeons.    These  do  not 
appear  to  have  been  deliberately  selected  for  domestication  as  more 
valuable  than  others.    It  is  probable  that  from  the  time  savage  man 
began  to  snare  and  trap  birds,  or  was  moved  occasionally  to  try  to 
remedy  a  less  than  mortal  injury  inflicted  by  his  weapon,  nearly 
every  kind  of  bird  has  been  kept  in  captivity.    Many  wild  birds  are 
as  highly  prized  for  food  as  any  of  those  that  have  been  domesti- 
cated.   It  was,  evidently,  not  so  much  the  taste  of  men,  or  the  some- 
thing in  the  bird  which  appealed  to  that  taste,  which  had  most 
effect  in  determining  which  kinds  should  be  domesticated.    It  was 
adaptability  to  the  conditions  of  domestic  life  ;  and  this  adaptability 
depended  upon  docility,  —  capacity  to  develop  confidence  in  man  and 
to  live  in  some  degree  of  harmony  with  other  domestic  creatures. 

4.  They  are  of  sufficient  size  to  be  individually  of  economic  im- 
portance.   This  applies  to  ordinary  specimens  of  the  smaller  kinds 
and  all  specimens  of  the  larger  kinds  of  poultry.    Bantam  fowls 
(except  the  larger  types,  Cochin  and  Brahma)  are  of  no  importance 
except  for  "  fancy." 

5.  They   tend  to   improve  in   domestication   in   qualities   most 
valuable  to  man.    This  is  most  noticeable  in  a  comparison  of  poul- 
try and  pigeons.    Improvement  in  pigeons  is  possible,  and  much 


NATURE  AND  USES  OF  POULTRY  7 

has  been  done  in  that  line,  but  no  such  marked  general  improve- 
ment has  taken  place  in  pigeons  as  in  the  common  kinds  of  poultry. 

6.  They  are  completely  under  the  control  of  man  in  domestica- 
tion.   In  this  respect  the  pigeon  affords  a  most  striking  contrast. 
All  kinds  of  poultry  can  be  restrained  by  fences  or  kept  in  yards ; 
pigeons  can  be  controlled  only  in  cages. 

7.  They  are  dependent  upon  man  for  existence  in  civilization. 
Aerial  birds  may  maintain  themselves  in  settled  districts  independ- 
ently of  man.1    Birds  of  the  poultry  group,  once  domesticated,  be- 
come dependent  on  man  and  can  exist  in  contact  with  civilization 
only  as  the  property  of  individuals  who  protect  them. 

The  elementary  poultry  character.  The  characteristic  of  terres- 
trial birds  which  is  of  prime  economic  importance  is  the  condition 
of  the  young  when  hatched.  The  young  of  terrestrial  birds  emerge 
from  the  shell  full-formed,  well  covered  with  down,  capable  of  loco- 
motion, and  able  to  feed  themselves  as  soon  as  they  require  nourish- 
ment. Thus  from  the  start  they  are,  in  a  remarkable  degree, 
independent  of  the  parent,  while  the  young  of  aerial  birds,  hatched 
naked,  blind,  and  helpless,  are  wholly  dependent  upon  the  parents 
until  quite  full-grown.  A  high  degree  of  independence  in  the  young 
of  birds  which  live  and  nest  upon  the  ground  is  a  necessary  condi- 
tion of  that  mode  of  life  in  a  state  of  nature.  In  domestication  this 
same  characteristic  greatly  augments  their  usefulness,  permitting 
important  modifications  in  their  habits  and  making  it  possible  to 
produce  them  economically  in  much  greater  numbers  and  under  a 
greater  variety  of  conditions  than  any  other  kind  of  domestic  crea- 
tures. The  importance  of  this  characteristic  is  seen  very  plainly 
when  we  contrast  those  habits  of  aerial  and  terrestrial  birds  which 
are  associated  with  the  condition  of  the  young,  and  compare  the 
things  which  may  profitably  be  done  with  birds  in  domestication. 

Young  aerial  birds  require  so  much  attention  from  their  parents 
that  birds  of  this  class  are  necessarily  monogamous  in  mating  habits 

1  It  is  a  fact  worth  noting  in  this  connection  that  while  the  wild  pigeon  in 
North  America  has  almost  disappeared,  flocks  of  free  pigeons  maintain  them- 
selves in  large  cities,  where  they  often  make  themselves  a  nuisance,  escaping 
destruction  more  easily  than  in  the  open  country  because  conditions  in  the  city 
prohibit  the  use  of  the  weapons  most  effective  in  exterminating  them.  So  the 
little  English  sparrow,  individually  insignificant,  finds  its  greatest  safety  in  the  cities, 
where  it  multiplies  amazingly,  and  efforts  to  dislodge  or  exterminate  it  are  futile. 


8  POULTRY  CULTURE 

and  of  relatively  low  fecundity,  rearing  usually  only  from  two  to 
four  or  five  young  at  a  time  and  breeding  only  once  or  twice  in  a 
season.  Even  pigeons  in  domestication,  while  breeding  perhaps 
once  in  two  months  the  year  round,  produce  annually  but  ten  or 
twelve  young  to  the  pair.  Thus  it  is  necessary  to  retain,  for  breeding 
purposes,  as  many  males  as  females,  and  even  then  the  rate  of 
increase  is  slow  as  compared  with  that  of  land  birds.  In  general, 
birds  of  this  class  will  perish  if  deprived  of  the  care  of  their  own 
parents,  while,  because  the  amount  of  attention  they  require  is  out 
of  all  proportion  to  their  individual  value,  man  cannot  afford  to 
attend  to  their  wants. 

Among  terrestrial  birds,  pairing  seems  to  have  been  the  original 
mating  habit.  The  disposition  to  pair  often  crops  out  even  in 
fowls,  which  are  conspicuously  polygamous  and  indiscriminate  in 
this  relation.  Young  geese  usually  mate  in  pairs,  and  these  and 
the  males  of  geese  and  some  others  of  the  rarer  kinds  of  poultry 
generally  mate  with  only  a  small  number  of  females.  But  when 
one  parent,  naturally  the  female,  can  hatch  and  care  for  a  large 
number  of  young,  the  male,  relieved  of  direct  responsibility  for  the 
care  of  his  offspring,  increases  the  number  of  his  mates  and  seeks 
to  destroy  the  rivals  for  their  affections.  However  beautiful  mo- 
nogamy among  the  lower  creatures  may  appear  when  considered 
ethically,  economically  it  is  a  fault  which  severely  restricts  the  pos- 
sibilities of  reproduction  and  reduces  the  profits  of  production. 
The  general  serviceableness  and  popularity  of  the  various  kinds  of 
poultry  are  very  nearly  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  deviation 
from  the  habit  of  pairing  which  it  has  been  possible  to  secure. 

Not  being  dependent  on  the  care  of  adults  of  their  own  kind,  the 
young  of  land  birds  may  be  reared  by  other  land  birds  or  by  the 
use  of  artificial  methods.  So  it  is  possible  to  relieve  the  females 
also  of  the  care  of  the  young  to  any  extent  desirable,  and  to  take 
full  advantage  of  their  fecundity. 

Values  of  poultry.  Poultry  contribute  to  the  welfare  of  men  in 
more  ways  than  any  other  class  of  creatures.  They  supply  him 
with  flesh  and  eggs  for  food,  and  feathers  for  comfort  or  ornament, 
utilize  many  wastes  of  the  house  and  farm,  are  of  service  in  agri- 
culture, and  minister  to  man's  pleasure.  Their  likeness  simplifies 
the  work  of  caring  for  different  kinds  under  one  management, 


NATURE  AND  USES  OF  POULTRY  9 

their  differences  of  habit  often  enable  the  poultryman  to  handle 
flocks  of  several  kinds  much  more  profitably  than  he  could  keep 
an  equal  number  of  any  one  kind,  and  their  difference  in  products 
gives  a  greater  variety  of  articles,  for  use  or  sale. 

The  use  of  poultry  flesh  as  food  is  governed  by  its  convenience, 
quality,  and  cheapness. 

Convenience.  While,  compared  among  themselves,  the  common 
birds  of  the  poultry  group  show  considerable  diversity  in  size,  com- 
pared with  other  domestic  creatures  generally  used  for  food  they 
are  all  small.  Their  size  is  such  that  at  any  season  and  in  any 
climate  an  ordinary  family  can  use  a  carcass  while  fresh.  Their 
conformation  is  such  that  the  killing  and  dressing  of  poultry  are 
comparatively  easy  and  cleanly  processes,  often  performed  by 
women,  and  even  by  quite  young  children. 

Quality.  The  flesh  of  poultry,  compared  with  that  of  mammals 
grown  for  food  purposes  in  domestication,  is  finer  grained  and, 
when  in  proper  condition,  more  tender.  It  is  at  the  same  time  easily 
digested  and  highly  nutritious.  The  flesh  of  the  more  common  kinds 
of  strictly  land  birds  (fowls  and  turkeys)  is  regarded  as  a  necessity 
for  invalids  and  persons  of  weak  digestion,  and  is  the  most  popular 
luxury  in  the  meat  line.  The  flesh  of  ducks  and  geese,  being  more 
oily  and  of  stronger  flavor,  is  not  so  freely  used  except  by  those  races 
which  do  not  eat  pork,  but  all  kinds  of  poultry  meat  are  commonly 
rated  as  greater  delicacies  than  meat  of  other  domestic  creatures. 

Cheapness.  The  cost  of  poultry  is  estimated  differently  by  the 
producer  consuming  a  home  product  and  the  consumer  buying 
what  he  uses.  For  the  grower,  as  a  rule,  poultry  is  actually  cheap 
meat.  The  agricultural  service  of  the  birds  and  their  feeding 
largely  on  stuffs  that  would  otherwise  go  to  waste  make  the  cost 
of  production  on  farms  small.  Even  where  they  are  grown  at 
greater  expense,  the  cost  is  usually  low  enough  to  make  it  as  eco- 
nomical for  the  grower  to  use  poultry  freely  as  to  buy  other  meat 
of  like  quality.  It  is  this  cheapness  and  convenience,  as  already 
noted,  that  determine  the  use  in  America  of  enormous  quantities 
of  poultry  by  producers  and  bring  about  the  almost  universal  desire 
to  grow  poultry  wherever  there  is  opportunity  to  do  so. 

For  the  buyer,  poultry  is  generally  cheap  as  compared  with  other 
meats  which  may  be  used  to  supplement  the  beef,  mutton,  and  pork 


10  POULTRY  CULTURE 

which  are  staple  meat  foods  for  most  healthy  people,  or  as  substi- 
tutes for  them  in  the  diet  of  invalids.  Thus  it  is  cheapness  and 
quality  that  determine  the  use  of  poultry  by  those  who,  buying  all 
meat  as  they  use  it,  are  not  brought  to  an  appreciation  of  the  con- 
venience enjoyed  by  those  who  produce  their  own  poultry.  This 
difference  in  estimates  of  the  properties  making  poultry  desirable 
as  food  accounts  for  the  too  common  failure  of  poultry  growers  to 
understand  the  demand  for  poultry  of  superior  table  quality.  The 
grower  using  poultry  as  a  staple  meat  and  selling  his  surplus  is 
not  as  particular  as  to  the  quality  of  the  meat  as  the  nonproduc- 
ing  consumer  to  whom  it  is  a  delicacy. 

Properties  of  eggs.  The  egg  —  the  most  unique  of  food  products 
—  is  the  only  article  of  animal  food  which  we  have  in  a  natural  pack- 
age. The  term  "  hen  fruit,"  though  facetiously  used,  recognizes  a 
resemblance  between  the  egg' and  the  large  class  of  fruits  whose 
edible  portion  is  protected  by  a  covering  which,  as  long  as  it 
remains  intact,  is  a  highly  effective  guard  against  many  external 
causes  of  deterioration.  Eggs  may  be  kept  reasonably  fresh  and 
sweet  in  conditions  and  at  temperatures  in  which  meat  could  be 
kept  for  only  a  short  time.  Easily  digested,  highly  nutritious,  con- 
sidered as  a  separate  article  of  diet  they  have,  in  even  greater  degree 
than  the  creatures  which  supply  them,  the  properties  of  palatability 
and  convenience. 

The  most  important  use  of  eggs,  however,  is  in  combination 
with  other  ingredients  in  the  endless  variety  of  food  concoctions 
that  have  been  devised.  While  eggs  for  eating  are  often  regarded 
as  a  luxury,  to  be  indulged  in  according  to  the  price  of  eggs  as  com- 
pared with  other  foods,  eggs  for  cooking  are  generally  regarded  as 
a  necessity.  In  a  close  analysis  of  the  subject,  the  demand  for  eggs 
is  seen  to  have  a  great  deal  of  influence  in  determining  the  relative 
popularity  of  the  different  kinds  of  poultry,  and  also  to  increase 
their  production,  thus  reducing  the  cost  of  table  poultry  to  the 
consumer. 

Feathers  are  a  by-product  in  poultry  culture,  except  in  ostrich 
farming,  which  is  limited  to  a  few  localities  and  not  extensive  any- 
where. With  this  exception  the  production  of  feathers  for  com- 
merce is  never  a  direct  object  in  poultry  keeping.  The  feathers  of 
the  common  kinds  of  poultry,  when  saved  and  sold,  will,  it  is  usually 


NATURE  AND  USES  OF  POULTRY 


II 


estimated,  bring  just  about  enough l  to  pay  for  dressing  the  birds 
and  for  the  preparation  of  the  feathers  for  market. 

Services  of  poultry  in  agriculture.  The  possibilities  of  making 
poultry  work  are  only  beginning  to  be  duly  appreciated.  For 
centuries  poultry  on  farms  have  been  kept  about  the  dwelling  and 
outbuildings,  where  a  limited  number  might  be  tolerated,  but  with 
efforts  to  keep  a  large  stock,  or  to  keep  several  kinds  together, 
they  usually  became  a  nuisance.  Gradually  farmers  have  been 
learning  that,  with  a  proper  distribution  of  poultry  on  the  farm, 
larger  stocks  can  be  kept  at  relatively  less  cost  and  with  much 
better  results.  Some  of  the  characteristics  of  poultry  most  objection- 
able when  the  stock  is  allowed  to  concentrate  near  the  dwelling  and 
is  not  kept  under  restraint  are  most  useful  when  properly  directed. 

Of  poultry  in  general  it  may  be  said  that,  more  than  any  other 
kind  of  domestic  live  stock,  they  can  be  made  of  service  to  the 
husbandman,  because  of  the  extent  to  which  they  can  be  kept  on 
land  occupied  by  crops,  not  only  without  damaging  the  crops,  but 
with  benefit  to  them  and  improvement  to  the  land. 

Recreation  in  poultry  culture.  Poultry  minister  to  the  pleasure 
of  man  in  various  ways.  Many  flocks  are  kept  "  to  look  at  "  either 
because  of  their  general  attractiveness  as  living  figures  in  the  land- 
scape, or  because  of  their  peculiar  attractiveness  to  their  owner. 
In  these  uses  poultry  satisfy  a  rather  passive  interest.  Active 
interest  in  poultry  kept  for  recreation  is  almost  invariably  closely 
associated  with  the  desire  of  man  to  improve  the  products  of 
nature.  A  bird  which  he  regards  as  of  exceptional  merit  is  valued 
by  the  poultry  fancier  more  as  a  product  of  his  skill  than  as  a  thing 
in  itself  beautiful.  The  breeder  of  pit  gamecocks  is  insensible  to 
the  brutality  of  the  sport,  because  it  is  to  him  the  necessary  test  of 
fighting  quality  and  courage  brought  to  their  highest  development 
by  his  skill  in  breeding  and  handling  his  birds. 

1  While  this  is  the  common  opinion,  and  may  still  be  right  for  most  cases,  at 
some  places  the  cost  of  picking  has  increased  of  recent  years  faster  than  the 
price  of  feathers. 


CHAPTER  II 

EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY 

Antiquity  of  poultry  culture.  The  beginnings  of  poultry  keep- 
ing were  a  part  of  prehistoric  human  life.  Our  Aryan  ancestors 
had  poultry,  but  whether  they  domesticated  it  after  having  made 
some  progress  in  civilization,  or  at  an  earlier  period,  or  received 
it  from  an  earlier  or  an  alien  race  is  not  known.  From  the  greater 
ease  of  taking  and  holding  in  captivity  such  birds  as  the  fowl,  duck, 
and  goose  it  is  quite  reasonable  to  suppose  that  these  may  have 
been  domesticated  before  any  of  the  mammals,  and  by  people  in 
a  most  primitive  state.  The  distribution  of  domestic  fowls,  ducks, 
and  geese  over  the  earth  has  followed  in  a  general  way  the 
migrations  of  peoples  of  Aryan  origin.  An  important  exception 
appears  to  be  the  case  of  the  Chinese  poultry,  which,  according 
to  their  tradition,  was  received  from  the  West  about  1400  B.C. 

Pre-modern  poultry  culture.  Prior  to  the  middle  of  the  nine- 
teenth century,  poultry  culture  was  essentially  primitive  and  appar- 
ently conducted  on  the  same  general  lines  in  all  lands.  Accounts 
of  poultry  keeping  in  this  long  period  are  rare  and  historically 
of  little  value.  Unsatisfactory  as  these  writings  are  as  sources  of 
complete  information,  they  give  an  impression  of  the  conditions 
that  they  reflect  which  is  undoubtedly  correct  in  its  general  features, 
and  which  suffices  for  the  practical  student,  if  not  for  the  curious 
investigator.  From  the  remaining  records  of  this  period  and  from 
the  fact  that  in  it  nearly  all  prominent  types  of  poultry  were  devel- 
oped and  brought  to  a  high  grade  of  excellence,  it  may  reasonably 
be  concluded  : 

First :  That  the  common  idea  that  poultry  culture  throughout  this  period 
was  characterized  by  general  ignorance  of  good  methods  of  management  and 
universal  failure  to  appreciate  the  possibilities  of  profit  from  poultry  is  erron- 
eous; and, 

Second :  That  the  industry  was  everywhere  developed  on  a  scale  and  along 
lines  appropriate  to  circumstances  affecting  it;  that  keepers  of  poultry  in  general 

12 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY     13 

were  as  well  versed  in  management  as  conditions  and  the  scale  of  operations 
required ;  and  that  persons  especially  interested  in  poultry,  though  relatively 
less  numerous,  were,  probably,  quite  as  skillful  as  now. 

We  are  coming  to  a  better  appreciation  of  these  facts  as,  after 
many  efforts  to  force  the  development  of  the  industry  in  accord- 
ance with  "  factory  "  ideas,  we  return  to  the  simpler  methods  of 
earlier  times. 

Persistence  of  primitive  conditions  explained.  Before  the  appli- 
cation of  steam  as  a  motive  force  gave  a  new  and  tremendous 
stimulus  to  trade  and  manufacturing  and  brought  about  a  great 
movement  of  population  to  the  cities,  only  a  very  small  per  cent  of 
people  were  so  situated  that  they  could  not  either  produce  what 
poultry  and  eggs  they  needed  or  procure  cheap  supplies  from  nearby 
sources. '  The  value  of  products  of  this  class  was  usually  not  great 
enough  to  warrant  transportation  from  a  distance.  Except  in  the 
vicinity  of  a  few  large  cities,  a  poultry  keeper  producing  beyond 
the  needs  of  his  own  family  would  not  often  find  a  profitable  outlet 
for  the  surplus.  Under  such  conditions  poultry  culture  was  neces- 
sarily almost  everywhere  a  home  industry  producing  for  home 
consumption,  and  that  is  still  the  status  of  the  industry  in  every 
agricultural  section  which  has  not  easy  access  for  its  products  to 
large  cities  or  to  manufacturing  or  mining  sections. 

Quality  of  common  poultry.  The  ordinary  native  stocks  of  fowls, 
ducks,  geese,  and  turkeys  in  America,  at  the  time  of  the  general 
awakening  of  interest  in  improved  poultry  and  for  some  years  after, 
were,  even  when  compared  with  the  average  mongrel  stocks  of 
to-day,  small  birds  of  distinctly  inferior  table  qualities  and  usually 
inferior  also  in  egg  production.  This  degeneracy  of  stock  was 
due  to  the  common  practice  of  selecting  for  the  table  first.  When 
a  bird  was  wanted  for  food  it  was  usual  to  take  the  largest  and 
best.  The  result  of  this  sort  of  selection,  continuously  operative, 
was  that  the  poorest  specimens  of  each  year  were  left  for  next 
year's  breeding.  That  such  practice,  persistently  followed,  did  not 
quickly  run  the  stock  out  was  due  to  these  saving  circumstances  : 
(i)  the  natural  tendency  of  the  stock  to  improve  under  (2)  the 
very  favorable  conditions  which  small  flocks  at  liberty  on  farms 
enjoyed,  and  (3)  the  occasional  introduction  of  blood  of  improved 
native  stock. 


14  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Improved  native  stocks.  In  fowls,  especially,  flocks  of  superior 
quality  were  without  doubt  numerous  enough  to  have  considerable 
influence  on  the  general  stock.  With  an  occasional  exception  these 
improved  stocks  were  of  no  fixed  color  type.  They  are  perhaps  best 
described  as  such  mongrels,  not  much  better  than  the  general  run 
of  native  stocks,  as  would  be  obtained  by  selecting  the  best  for 
breeding  instead  of  for  eating.  Now  and  then  a  person  particularly 
interested  in  poultry  would  breed  his  flock  to  one  type  of  color, 
but  the  prevailing  belief  was  that  the  best  breeding  was  that  which 
combined  the  greatest  variety  ;  and,  as  a  rule,  specimens  leaving 
such  flocks  were  not  bred  to  the  type,  but  were  used  to  give  to 
the  purchaser's  stock  such  of  their  quality  as  they  could.  Hawk- 
colored  or  Dominique  fowls  were  commonly  thought  to  be  su- 
perior layers,  but  in  general,  virtue  was  attributed  to  the  color, 
without  regard  to  breeding  t>r  other  characteristics.  This  color 
type  being  also  a  most  persistent  one,  hawk-colored  fowls  were 
numerous,  and  occasional  references  may  be  found  to  flocks  in 
which  this  was  the  dominant  color. 

Interest  in  distinctive  types.  The  first  importations  of  foreign 
breeds  to  attract  general  attention  were  the  importations  of  fowls 
from  China  in  1846  (?).  Though  details  and  dates  are  lacking,  it 
is  scarcely  open  to  doubt  that  both  Asiatic  1  and  European  fowls 
were  occasionally  imported  in  colonial  times,  —  possibly  some 
breeds  by  early  settlers ;  but  there  is  little  evidence  of  interest 
in  improved  stock  of  any  kind  until  after  the  Revolution. 

With  the  awakening  of  interest  in  and  inquiry  for  stock  of 
reputedly  pure  and  superior  blood,  it  was  found  that  there  was 
altogether  a  great  deal  of  such  stock  in  the  country,  and  that  all 
the  principal  types  were  well  represented.  Until  the  sensational 
exploitation  of  the  Asiatics  they  seemed  less  in  favor  than  the 
Dorkings,  Spanish,  and  Polish.  All  of  these  races,  and  others 
which  came  in  later,  were  crude  as  compared  with  the  carefully 
developed  types  of  to-day.  The  wonderful  stories  sometimes  told 
of  their  size,  precocity,  and  productiveness  greatly  stimulated 
interest  in  them.  On  the  supposition  that  these  stories  were 
authentic,  the  impression  grew  up  in  later  times  that  the  early 

1  Kerr,  Domestic  and  Ornamental  Poultry  (1851),  p.  270,  says  that  Asiatic 
fowls  were  brought  to  the  vicinity  of  Philadelphia  about  forty  years  before. 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY    15 

stocks  were  much  superior  in  size,  vigor,  and  productiveness  to 
those  of  their  kind  known  at  the  present  day.  What  the  truth  as 
to  this  may  be  must  always  remain  a  matter  of  conjecture.  The 
probable  truth  is  that  the  early  stocks  were  on  the  whole  inferior 
to  average  specimens  of  their  races  at  the  present  time.  Certain 
it  is  that  not  one  of  the  many  foreign  breeds  introduced  was  of 
the  type  adapted  to  American  ideas  and  conditions.  No  one 
of  them  ever  appealed,  or  could  have  appealed,  to  the  mass  of 
poultry  keepers  as  has  the  so-called  American  type,  otherwise 
known  as  the  general-purpose  type. 

Importations  of  ducks  and  geese  of  foreign  breeds  early  made 
American  fanciers  familiar  with  the  favorites,  of  both  kinds,  in 
various  parts  of  Europe,  and  with  the  Chinese  and  African  races 
of  geese.  Singularly,  the  most  important  of  all  foreign  breeds  of 
waterfowl,  the  Pekin  duck,  was  almost  unknown  in  this  country 
until  quite  late  in  the  nineteenth  century.  Coming  into  general 
notice  just  at  the  time  when  artificial  methods  of  incubation  and 
brooding  had  been  brought  to  a  practical  stage,  and  being  espe- 
cially adapted  to  the  intensive  methods  of  culture  which  harmonize 
with  these,  the  Pekin  duck  furnished  the  material  for  what  soon 
became  the  most  profitable  line  of  poultry  culture. 

In  the  improvement  of  the  turkey  the  greatest  progress  was 
made  by  crossing  the  domestic  native  with  the  original  wild  stock, 
still  found  in  its  natural  state  in  certain  localities  over  a  wide 
area  of  country. 

First  effects  of  aquaintance  with  improved  breeds.  Observation 
of  the  striking  new  types  could  not  fail  to  impress  on  the  minds  of 
those  already  interested  in  the  improvement  of  poultry,  the  advan- 
tages of  fixed  type  and  of  uniformity  in  the  individuals  of  a  flock, 
or  to  create  an  interest  in  methods  of  producing  these.  Naturally 
such  persons  procured  and  bred  stock  of  these  breeds,  but  from 
the  beginning  of  public  interest  in  them  it  was  apparent  that  the 
mass  of  poultry  keepers  were  more  interested  in  the  new  breeds 
for  the  benefits  to  the  native  stock  from  crossing  with  them,  than 
for  the  development  of  the  breeds  in  their  purity. 

It  was  for  this  reason,  and  perhaps  also  because  they  had  been 
quite  widely  introduced  through  all  that  part  of  the  country  which 
was  in  close  touch  with  Asiatic  commerce,  that  the  Asiatic  fowls 


1 6  POULTRY  CULTURE 

were  so  extensively  used  to  grade  up  the  native  stock.  They, 
more  than  any  other  race,  had  the  size  which  degenerate  native 
stock  everywhere  lacks.  They  were  also  of  more  robust  constitu- 
tion than  the  European  races.  It  is  said  on  good  authority  that, 
as  a  result  of  the  crossing  of  Asiatic  on  native  stock,  the  average 
size  of  fowls  brought  to  the  Boston  market  was  doubled  within  a 
few  years. 

Development  of  the  American  type.  Familiarity  with  the  foreign 
types  and  with  the  results  of  mixture  with  the  native  stocks  quickly 
developed  the  idea  of  a  type  of  fowl  better  suited  to  America  than 
any  of  the  others.  While  most  poultry  keepers  were  using  stock 
of  the  new  breeds  with  their  native  stock,  without  much  thought 
beyond  immediate  results,  some  of  the  fanciers  and  the  more  intelli- 
gent breeders  were  trying  to  make  and  establish  breeds  having  the 
characteristics  generally  desired.  The  ideal  of  the  American  type 
seems  to  have  become  fixed  in  many  minds  at  the  very  beginning 
of  efforts  to  improve  poultry.  In  the  few  years  following  1850  a 
great  many  crosses  were  made  for  this  purpose  and  offered  as 
new  breeds. 

While  information  concerning  these  is  meager,  it  can  hardly  be 
doubted  that  many  of  these  mixtures  gave  fowls  differing  but 
slightly  in  substantial  characters  from  the  type  desired.  The  com- 
bination of  such  qualities  with  superficial  characters  attractive  to 
the  mass  of  poultry  keepers  was  not  produced  until  the  Plymouth 
Rock  appeared  in  the  late  sixties.  This  breed  was  first  exhibited 
in  1869,  and  immediately  entered  upon  the  career  of  popularity 
which  was  soon  to  make  it  more  numerous  in  America  than  all 
other  standard-bred  fowls  combined.  While  in  the  duplicating 
of  the  original  stocks,  and  in  the  perfecting  of  the  breed,  other 
elements  were  used,  and  the  various  lines  subsequently  mingled 
to  such  an  extent  that  no  accurate  analysis  of  the  blood  lines  of 
the  modern  Barred  Rock  is  possible,  the  first  stock  was  made  by 
crossing  a  male  of  the  hawk-colored  type  on  black  Asiatic  hens, 
called  by  some  Javas  and  by  some  Cochins.  This  cross  gave 
birds  of  the  color  that  had  long  been  regarded  as  associated  with 
peculiar  merit,  and  at  the  same  time  gave  a  fowl  of  the  medium 
size  desired  and  having  for  its  ancestry  the  hardiest  native  stock 
and  the  hardiest  of  the  foreign  races. 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY          17 

The  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  (which,  until  the  white  variety 
appeared,  was  called  simply  the  Plymouth  Rock)  was  the  first 
thoroughbred  fowl  presenting  the  combination  of  characteristics 
more  satisfactory  to  the  farmer  than  what  he  secured  from  either 
the  native  stock  or  the  indiscriminate  mixture  of  breeds  which 
popular  authorities  favored.  The  result  was  that,  in  all  parts  of  the 
country,  people  who  before  had  held  aloof  from  "fancy"  breeds 
began  to  breed  the  Plymouth  Rock.  The  appearance  of  a  stable 
type  suiting  the  general  idea  gave  a  tremendous  impetus  to 
poultry  culture. 

After  the  Plymouth  Rock  came  other  varieties  and  breeds  differ- 
ing from  it  in  color  of  plumage  or  in  shape  of  comb,  or  varying 
somewhat  from  its  size,  shape,  and  weight,  but  still  of  the  general 
type  of  fowl  best  adapted  to  the  production  of  both  eggs  and  meat 
and  to  the  conditions  under  which  most  poultry  is  kept  for  profit. 
The  Asiatic  type  continued  to  be  bred,  especially  where  large  fowls 
for  the  table  were  wanted  ;  and  the  Leghorn,  the  most  serviceable 
European  type,  was  improved  in  this  country  and  became  an 
important  factor  in  the  extension  of  interest  in  improved  stock, 
especially  where  eggs  were  the  most  important  product. 

Artificial  incubation.  The  hatching  of  eggs  by  artificial  means 
has  been  practiced  in  Egypt  and  China  from  very  early  times. 
This  fact  and  something  of  the  methods  used  by  these  peoples 
have  long  been  known,  but  the  methods  used  were  not  adapted 
either  to  the  conditions  of  the  industry  in  Europe  and  America  or 
to  the  habits  and  temperament  of  occidental  races.  Incubators  t>f 
the  types  found  practicable  for  general  use  were  first  introduced 
about  1875.  The  machines  of  that  period  have  never  been  sur- 
passed for  efficient  work  when  skillfully  handled,  but  their  manage- 
ment was  too  difficult  for  the  average  operator. 

Towarol  1890  more  perfectly  regulated  machines  appeared,  and 
the  incubator  began  to  come  into  general  use  and  to  have  a  pro- 
nounced effect  on  the  development  of  the  industry.  In  the  next 
ten  years  more  marked  improvements  in  the  construction  of  incu- 
bators easy  of  operation  were  made.  These  improvements  and  the 
development  of  more  practicable  methods  of  artificial  brooding 
made  possible  the  production  of  poultry  on  a  much  larger  scale 
than  had  ever  been  attempted  before.  Though  that  was  the  feature 


1 8  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  the  use  of  artificial  methods  which  most  fired  the  imaginations 
of  those  considering  the  financial  possibilities  of  poultry  culture,  and 
though,  in  a  limited  way  and  in  a  few  lines,  the  scale  of  operations 
with  poultry  has  been  greatly  enlarged  by  the  use  of  artificial 
methods,  they  are  more  generally  valuable  as  supplementing  natural 
methods  than  as  a  substitute  for  them. 

Exhibitions.  The  first  public  exhibition  of  poultry  in  America 
was  held  in  the  Public  Garden  in  Boston,  in  1849.  This  exhibition, 
more  than  any  other  one  event,  gave  impetus  to  the  growing  excite- 
ment over  remarkable  kinds  of  poultry.  In  England,  a  few  years 
earlier,  a  great  poultry  show  had  been  held  in  the  Crystal  Palace, 
London.  Both  of  these  shows  were  noteworthy  for  the  number  and 
variety  of  exhibits  which  they  contained.  Each  in  its  own  country 
may  be  said  to  mark,  as  exactly  as  such  a  change  can  be  marked,  the 
end  of  the  ancient  and  the  beginning  of  the  modern  period  in  poultry 
culture.  With  them  began  the  organization  of  poultry  interests. 
Following  them,  organizations  of  poultrymen  multiplied,  and  shows 
were  held  in  many  places.  In  the  United  States  the  Civil  War 
drew  attention  for  a  while  from  such  interests,  but  hardly  had 
hostilities  ceased  when  the  interest  in  poultry  began  to  be  active. 
Poultry  exhibitions,  both  separately  and  as  an  adjunct  of  agri- 
cultural fairs,  have  been  one  of  the  most  important  factors  in  the 
development  of  the  industry. 

Poultry  literature  of  the  early  period.  Before  1815,  when 
Moubray's  first  book  appeared,  the  only  books  in  the  English  lan- 
guage exclusively  on  poultry  were  a  few  treatises  on  gamecocks 
and  cock  fighting,  and  the  work  of  Mascall,  published  in  1581. 
Moubray's  book  went  through  a  number  of  editions  and  seems  to 
have  met  the  popular  demand  for  twenty  years  or  more.  Then,  just 
as  the  period  was  closing,  a  number  of  books  appeared.  Between 
1 840  and  1860,  and  especially  in  the  ten  years  from  1845  to  1855, 
were  issued  more  books  undertaking  a  complete  presentation  of 
the  subject  of  poultry  culture  than  were  produced  in  the  following 
half-century.  Compared  with  this  output  the  latter  period  seems 
strangely  barren  of  books,  but  a  full  analysis  of  poultry  literature 
shows  that  the  books  which  came  out  so  rapidly,  and  relatively  in 
such  abundance,  at  the  beginning  of  the  modern  period,  are  really 
the  posthumous  literature  of  the  early  period.  Their  influence  on 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY    19 

the  development  of  the  industry  is  practically  negligible.  They  are 
best  appreciated  when  considered  as  the  concluding  records  of  the 
early  period.  The  merely  curious  reader,  more  impressed  by  what 
is  odd  than  by  what  is  familiar,  may  think  he  finds  in  them  a  great 
many  errors  now  obsolete.  The  close  student,  acquainted  with 
modern  developments,  is  much  more  impressed  by  the  practical 
knowledge  of  poultry  culture  in  earlier  times.  To  him  the  most  un- 
satisfactory thing  about  these  books  is  the  faultiness  of  their  descrip- 
tions of  breeds,  names  and  terms  being  used  so  carelessly  that  the 
identity  of  the  birds  alluded  to  is  often  doubtful.  Their  weakness 
in  this  particular  is  one  of  the  chief  sources  of  confusion  in  regard 
to  the  genesis  of  modern  breeds  and  types. 

Modern  poultry  literature.  As  we  have  seen  that  the  book 
literature  of  the  early  period  overlapped  the  beginnings  of  the 
modern  period,  so  we  find  the  beginnings  of  modern  literature 
taking  form  in  the  closing  years  of  the  early  period.  The  agri- 
cultural papers,  established  a  little  earlier,  furnished  the  natural 
medium  through  which  poultry  keepers  exchanged  information  and 
ideas,  and  made  the  first  steps  toward  transfers  of  stock.  At  first, 
references  to  poultry  matters  in  these  papers  were  brief  and  inter- 
mittent, but  before  long  many  of  them  regularly  devoted  special 
space  to  poultry,  —  a  practice  still  continued.  The  most  intense 
interest  in  poultry,  however,  was  not  among  agriculturists  but 
among  dwellers  in  towns  and  cities.  As  many  of  these  people  were 
but  slightly  interested  in  other  agricultural  subjects,  and  as  those 
especially  interested  in  poultry,  whether  in  town  or  country,  wanted 
more  information  on  the  subject  than  the  agricultural  paper  could 
give  them,  papers  devoted  especially  to  poultry,  or  to  poultry,  pigeons, 
arid  pet  stock,  began  to  appear. 

Journalism.  The  poultry  press  has  been  a  unique  factor  in  the 
development  of  the  industry.  The  great  number  of  periodicals 
devoted  to  this  subject  has  often  been  cited  as  an  illustration  of  the 
wealth-producing  capacity  of  a  specialty  which  could  support  so 
many  more  papers  than  any  other  of  its  class.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
in  only  a  small  proportion  of  cases  has  the  support  given  these 
papers  been  sufficient  to  make  them  profitable  to  their  publishers, 
with  most  of  whom  the  publication  of  a  poultry  paper  has  been  a 
side  issue.  But,  regardless  of  its  financial  value  to  proprietors,  the 


20  POULTRY  CULTURE 

poultry  press  collectively  has  been  a  highly  efficient  organ  for  the 
distribution  of  detailed  information  about  every  phase  of  poultry 
culture.  On  the  whole,  it  has  been  a  rather  indiscriminate  purveyor 
of  information,  exploiting  all  sorts  of  ideas  and  articles  without  in- 
quiring too  closely  into  their  merits.  As  a  rule,  it  has  been  more 
prone  to  fall  in  with  the  delusions  of  the  public  than  to  make 
careful  inquiries  as  to  facts. 

In  all  these  things  it  has  simply  reflected,  on  a  larger  scale  and 
publicly,  the  merits  and  the  faults  of  the  average  poultry  enthusiast, 
who  conceives  it  his  duty  to  spread  the  interest  in  poultry  culture 
as  far  and  as  fast  as  possible.  Whatever  may  be  said  of  the  moral- 
ity of  this  sort  of  exploitation,  or  of  the  losses  to  individuals  that  it 
causes,  in  considering  factors  in  the  development  of  the  poultry 
industry  this  must  be  reckoned  as  one  of  the  most  potent.  It  is 
impossible  to  make  any  accurate  estimate  of  the  numbers  of  people 
who  have  gone  into  poultry  keeping  with  exaggerated  ideas  of 
the  profits  to  be  realized,  who  would  never  have  been  interested 
in  it  to  that  extent  had  they  known  the  truth,  but  who,  once  in 
it,  remained  until  they  had  made  a  success,  though  not  of  the 
proportions  they  had  anticipated. 

The  poultry  press  has  literally  spread  broadcast,  as  fast  as  it  came 
to  light,  every  bit  of  knowledge  and  every  idea  on  the  subject ;  but 
generally  so  discursively,  and  with  so  little  effort  to  suppress  mis- 
leading or  superfluous  matter,  that  those  who  went  to  papers  for 
information  were  likely  to  turn  from  them  in  confusion.  The  situa- 
tion created  by  so  active  an  agency,  constantly  extending  interest 
in  the  subject  yet  never  satisfying  the  curiosity  created,  greatly 
stimulated  the  demand  for  books  which  would  systematically  pre- 
sent the  essentials  of  the  subject. 

Books.  With  a  few  exceptions,  recent  books  have  been  either 
monographs  or  symposia  on  special  subjects.  Some  of  those  de- 
signed to  cover  the  subject  completely  are  really  collections  of  several 
essays  on  subjects  in  which  the  authors  were  specialists,  with  brief 
and  perfunctory  treatments  of  such  other  topics  as  were  taken  up, 
and  with  many  important  matters  omitted.  Some  of  the  most  pre- 
tentious titles  were  given  to  works  of  small  size  and  less  importance. 

While  the  need  of  comprehensive,  authoritative  works  was  every- 
where recognized,  and  nearly  every  author  confessed  a  purpose  to 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY    2I 

meet  this  demand,  so  little  confidence  had  either  authors  or  pub- 
lishers in  the  permanent  value  of  these  books  that  in  over  forty 
years  there  were  issued,  bound  in  boards,  only  three  poultry 
books  by  American  authors.1  In  all  that  time  only  one  American 
book  (Felch's  "  Poultry  Culture  ")  appeared  which  secured  exten- 
sive recognition  as  an  authority.  The  favorite  work  with  Ameri- 
can poultry  keepers  was  an  English  book,  "  The  Practical  Poultry 
Keeper,"  by  Lewis  Wright.  The  information  in  this  book  was 
not  always  adapted  to  American  conditions,  but  the  book  as  a 
whole  furnished  the  most  complete  and  logical  treatment  of  the 
subject  from  a  modern  point  of  view,  and  as  such  had  a  great 
influence. 

It  is  not  practicable  here  to  go  into  a  discussion  of  reasons  for 
the  scarcity  of  good  books  by  American  authors,  but  one  most 
important  reason  should  be  mentioned.  The  common  lack  of 
confidence  in  the  permanent  value  of  books  written  during  this 
period  was  due  to  the  general  recognition  of  the  unsettled  condi- 
tion of  the  industry.  This  will  be  discussed  more  particularly  in  the 
next  chapter.  The  point  of  interest  here  is  that,  because  of  the 
changes  which  have  taken  place,  the  literature  of  the  first  half- 
century  of  the  modern  period  has  ceased  to  be  serviceable  for 
instruction  in  so  many  particulars  that  the  student  of  the  subject, 
reading  those  books  to-day,  needs  constantly  to  guard  against  teach- 
ings that  progress  has  made  obsolete.  For  this  reason  it  is  wise  to 
postpone  acquaintance  with  the  literature  of  that  period  until  one 
has  acquired  a  fair  general  knowledge  of  present  conditions  and 
practice,  and  is  thus  qualified  to  distinguish  between  what  is  obso- 
lete and  the  considerable  quantity  of  valuable  matter  to  be  found 
in  the  literature  of  the  period.  A  little  of  the  same  caution  is 
advisable  even  in  the  study  of  more  recent  literature,  for  some 
writers  on  poultry  draw  more  freely  on  past  literature  than  on 
current  experience. 

Instruction  and  investigation.  Public  educational  and  experi- 
mental work  was  not  seriously  undertaken  in  America  until  near 
the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century.  The  very  abundance  and 

1  I.  K.  Felch,  Poultry  Culture ;  I.  K.  Felch,  H.  S.  Babcock,  and  J.  Henry  Lee, 
The  Philosophy  of  Judging;  The  Standard  of  Perfection  (published  by  the 
American  Poultry  Association). 


22  POULTRY  CULTURE 

breadth  of  periodical  literature  superficially  meeting  the  demand 
for  information  was  in  part  responsible  for  this,  but  the  principal 
reason  was  that  neither  the  general  public  nor  the  educators  and 
investigators  had  outgrown  the  old  idea  of  the  insignificance  of 
poultry.  Though  still  in  the  rudimentary  stages,  these  agencies 
are  already  making  an  impression  on  the  industry.  Work  in  either 
line  requires,  first  of  all,  more  careful  consideration  of  facts  than 
has  been  usual  among  poultry  keepers,  the  reduction  of  actual 
knowledge  to  a  form  suitable  for  instruction,  and  a  proper  analy- 
sis and  summary  of  the  known  facts  in  any  problem  as  a  basis 
for  further  investigation.  The  influence  of  these  requirements  is 
already  apparent  in  many  directions. 

Individual  influence.  In  the  developments  of  the  modern  period 
personal  taste  and  talent  have  figured  on  a  much  more  extensive 
scale  than  formerly,  because  modern  conditions  furnished  a  vastly 
greater  field  for  their  exercise.  One  of  the  most  notable  differences 
between  the  ancient  and  the  modern  period  in  poultry  culture  is 
the  difference  in  the  relation  toward  poultry  culture  of  men  deeply 
interested  in  it.  The  conditions  of  poultry  production  through- 
out the  whole  of  the  early  period  were  such  that  all  poultry  keepers 
and  fanciers,  not  excepting  writers  regarded  as  authorities  on  the 
subject,  were  amateurs ;  the  opportunities  open  to  the  individual  any- 
where for  exploiting  his  interest  in  poultry  were  too  limited  to  admit 
of  making  a  trade  or  a  profession  of  any  line  of  work  with  poultry.1 

The  conditions  which  brought  about  the  rapid  development  of 
the  industry  created  a  field  for  the  profitable  use  of  the  knowledge 
and  skill  of  the  poultryman.  It  became  possible  for  men  to  make 
a  living  by  judging  poultry  and  by  writing  for  poultry  men,  as  well 
as  by  breeding  poultry.  By  their  activities  along  these  lines,  and 
in  the  opportunities  that  these  incidentally  gave  them  for  meeting 
people  interested  in  the  subject  over  a  very  large  territory,  m^ny 
men  have  had  great  influence  on  the  development  of  poultry  inter- 
ests. Hundreds  of  such  men  have  been  known  throughout  the 
English-speaking  world,  and  a  lesser  number  more  extensively. 
This  is  in  striking  contrast  to  the  former  period,  in  which  many 

1  This  statement  may  not  apply  strictly  to  a  few  producers  in  localities  supply- 
ing the  markets  of  such  cities  as  London,  Paris,  and  New  York,  but  we  have  no 
certain  knowledge  of  the  fact  as  to  these  cases. 


EVOLUTION  OF  THE  POULTRY  INDUSTRY          23 

men  must  have  been  influential  but  few  ever  became  known  outside 
of  their  own  localities. 

Trade  spirit.  Commercialism  in  modern  poultry  culture  is  often 
denounced  as  the  bane  of  the  business.  Such  denunciations  are 
applied  to  all  manifestations  of  the  commercial  element  in  practi- 
cal as  well  as  in  fancy  poultry  culture.  While  it  must  be  admitted 
that  the  commercial  spirit  has  developed  grave  abuses  in  both 
lines,  it  must  also  be  remembered  that  the  whole  structure  of 
modern  poultry  culture,  with  all  its  subsidiary  industries,  rests 
on  a  commercial  basis.  Commercial  opportunity  brought  about 
the  change  from  the  old  conditions,  and  has  repeatedly  opened 
up  new  avenues  for  the  extension  of  the  industry.  It  is  not  pos- 
sible here  to  discuss  in  detail  the  influence  that  the  invention 
and  exploitation  of  articles  used  in  poultry  keeping  has  had  upon 
the  industry,  but  a  correct  idea  of  the  growth  and  status  of  the 
industry  requires  recognition  of  the  commercial  spirit  as  an  es- 
sential element  in  present  and  future  poultry  culture. 


CHAPTER  III 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 

The  first  statistics  of  poultry.  In  the  United  States  the  first 
enumeration  of  poultry  was  made  in  the  census  of  1840,  and 
covered  only  the  number  and  value  of  the  poultry.  According  to 
this  census  the  total  value  of  all  the  poultry  in  the  country  was 
.$12,176, I/O.1  The  eggs  and  other  products  were  undoubtedly 
worth  enough  more  to  make  the  aggregate  $25,000,000.  This 
may  be  accepted  as  the  best  available  estimate  of  the  farm  value  of 
poultry  products  at  that  time.  In  comparing  these  with  later  figures 
the  difference  in  the  purchasing  power  of  money  must  be  taken 
into  account.  It  must  also  be  considered  that  at  that  time  much  of 
the  country  west  of  the  Mississippi  was  little  settled.  In  this  census 
report  the  state  of  Iowa,  which  now  has  an  annual  production  about 
equal  to  that  of  the  whole  country  in  1840,  is  credited  with  poultry 

1  In  "The  American  Poultry  Book"  (Harper  &  Brothers,  New  York,  1843)  's 
given  (p.  143)  the  following  abstract  from  the  returns  made  by  the  census  of 
1840,  exhibiting  the  total  value  of  all  the  poultry  in  the  various  states  and  territories 
of  the  Union  : 


STATES 

VALUE 

STATES 

VALUE 

Maine  

.       $123,171 

Ohio       .      .      .      . 

$734,93! 

New  Hampshire 

97,862 

Kentucky  ..... 

534,439 

Vermont  

176,437 

Tennessee      .     .     ,     . 

581,531 

Massachusetts    .... 

540,295 

Louisiana  

273,314 

Rhode  Island     .... 

61,492 

Mississippi     .... 

369,481 

Connecticut  

176,659 

Indiana      

393,228 

New  York     

•      2,373,029 

Illinois        

330,968 

New  Jersey  

412,487 

Michigan  .     .     .     .     . 

82,730 

Pennsylvania      .... 

•      1,033,072 

Arkansas   .     .     ... 

93,549 

Delaware 

/17  /l6  C 

Florida  (incomplete) 

.              6  1  007 

Maryland  

219,159 

Wisconsin      .... 

16,167 

Virginia    .... 

7  C2  ^67 

17  IOI 

North  Carolina  .... 

544,125 

District  of  Columbia    . 

3,092 

South  Carolina  .... 

590,594 

Total 

$1  °  176  170 

Georgia 

ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        25 

to  the  value  of  only  $17,101.  In  some  of  the  older  eastern  states 
the  value  of  poultry  given  is  so  large  as  to  indicate  a  considerable 
development  of  interest  in  poultry  some  years  before  it  began  to 
spread  widely.  Thus  in  New  York  the  value  of  poultry  products 
in  1840  undoubtedly  exceeded  $5,000,000,  and  the  annual  produc- 
tion of  the  Empire  State  at  that  time  was  greater  than  to-day  in 
Massachusetts. 

Present  value  of  poultry  products  in  the  United  States.  The 
Department  of  Agriculture  estimates  the  total  production  at  about 
$700,000,000  annually.1  These  figures,  large  as  they  seem,  are 
probably  much  below  the  actual  value  produced.2  They  are  very 
freely  quoted  to  show  the  magnitude  of  the  poultry  industry, 
and  comparisons  with  figures  for  other  staples  are  often  made, 
showing  a  total  value  of  poultry  production  in  excess  of  that  in 
many  other  lines  commonly  supposed  to  be  of  greater  importance. 
These  comparisons  generally  give  distorted  and  exaggerated 
views  of  the  relative  importance  of  poultry  culture,  suggesting 
developments  which  in  practice  are  difficult  or  impossible.  While 
large  undertakings  with  poultry  rarely  succeed,  the  increase  in 
production  due  to  a  general  extension  of  interest  is  often 
amazing.  In  Kansas  the  average  value  of  poultry  and  eggs 
sold  annually  in  the  state  for  the  five  years  ending  with  1896 
was  $3,333,562.  The  value  for  1897  was  $3,850,997  ;  the  value 
for  1907  was  $10,300,082. 

1  This  is  estimated  on  the  returns  of  the  United  States  census  of  1900  and  of 
later  figures  for  a  number  of  states.    So  far  as  the  author  has  been  able  to  learn, 
no  full  census  of  poultry  has  ever  been  taken  in  the  United  States.    Statistics  for 
poultry  have  been  taken  as  part  of  "  statistics  of  the  farm,"  and  no  account  has 
been  made  of  poultry  not  on  farms  or  large  plants.   In  Canada  no  general  poultry 
census  has  ever  been  taken. 

2  An  interesting  and  instructive  exercise  is  to  compute  the  cost  of  poultry  con- 
sumed in  a  country  on  an  assumed  per  capita  consumption.   Thus,  if  the  population 
of  the  United  States  be  taken  as  90,000,000,  and  it  be  assumed  that  each  individual 
consumes  one  egg  per  day,  and  that  the  value  of  the  eggs  is  but  one  cent  each,  it  will 
be  found  that  the  cost  of  supplying  each  resident  of  the  United  States  with  one  egg 
daily  for  a  year  is  $328,500,000,  —  almost  half  of  the  estimated  total  production  of 
eggs  and  all  kinds  of  poultry.    Or,  if  it  be  assumed  that  the  90,000,000  people 
represent  18,000,000  families  of  five  persons  each,  and  that  each  family  con- 
sumes weekly  one  chicken  at  a  cost  of  twenty-five  cents,  it  will  be  found  that  the 
total  cost  of  these  chickens  would  be  almost  exactly  one  third  of  $700,000,000. 
Such  computations  and  comparisons  enable  one  to  realize  what  large  figures 
actually  mean. 


26 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  i.  Back-yard  poultry  keeping 
(Photograph  from  A.  T.  Grosvenor)' 


The  poultry  industry.  The  production  (for  home  use  or  sale)  and 
the  sale  of  poultry  products  constitute  the  poultry  industry.  "  The 
poultry  business  "  is  a  term  applied  to  poultry  keeping  on  a  scale 

large  enough  to  make  it  the  busi- 
ness of  one  or  more  persons.  The 
greater  part,  probably  over  ninety 
per  cent,  of  all  the  poultry  sold  in 
the  United  States  is  produced  by 
poultry  keepers  who  do  not  make  a 
business  of  poultry  culture  but  keep 
poultry  on  a  small  scale  while  giving 
their  attention  chiefly  to  some  other 
occupation,  usually  general  farming. 
As  the  figures  of  the  early  census 
show,  there  was  a  poultry  industry 
of  considerable  proportions  before  the  idea  of  developing  poultry 
culture  as  a  business  began  to  be  entertained. 

While  the  magnitude  of  the  totals  of  volume  and  value  of  poul- 
try products  naturally  suggests  opportunity  for  the  development  of 
poultry  production  on  a  large  scale,  with  correspondingly  large 
profits,  the  fact  that  the 
demand  is  so  nearly  met 
by  the  produce  of  the 
millions  of  small  flocks 
should  be  far  more  signif- 
icant to  those  engaging 
in  large  poultry-producing 
enterprises.  The  poultry 
industry  as  a  whole  is  per- 
manent. It  includes  (as 
long  as  the  business  lasts) 
every  poultry  business. 
The  stable  factor  in  pro- 
duction is  the  farm  flock, 
the  produce  of  which  is 
largely  profit.  The  spectacular  large  enterprises  rarely  last  long, 
and  their  nominal  contributions  to  poultry  production  often  repre- 
sent only  a  waste  and  loss  of  money  earned  in  other  occupations. 


FIG.  2.  A  back-yard  poultry  plant.   House  con- 
struction conforming  to  that  of  residence 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        27 

Trend  of  development.  The  natural  tendency  of  the  poultry  in- 
dustry is  not  to  develop  production  on  a  large  scale  but  to  extend 
and  improve  ordinary  small  operations  as  far  as  possible  without 
changing  the  position  that  they  occupy  as  subordinate  to  the  other 
interests  of  the  poultry  keeper  and  to  other  uses  of  his  land.  The 
general  development  of  productive  poultry  culture  proceeds  accord- 
ing to  this  tendency,  with  exceptions  when  local  or  temporary  con- 
ditions stimulate  to  specialization  in  poultry.  In  the  distribution  of 
poultry  products  the  natural  tendency  is  toward  concentration  of 
collections  and  trade  and  the  building  up  of  large  businesses. 

The  natural  division  of  the  poultry  industry.  Trade  conditions 
separate  the  masses  of  producers  and  distributors  (including  collec- 
tors), though  a  considerable  number  of  individuals  may  combine 
both  functions.  It  is  noteworthy  that  the  greater  number  of  "  mid- 
dlemen," as  well  as  of  producers  of  poultry,  handle  poultry  with 
other  lines,  for  this  point  is  vital  in  plans  for  cooperative  market- 
ing of  poultry  produce.  It  should  also  be  observed  that,  both  in  the 
combination  of  poultry  production  or  selling  with  the  production 
or  selling  of  other  lines  of  produce,  and  in  the  division  of  labor 
which  makes  one  man  a  producer  (of  a  variety  of  articles)  and 
another  a  dealer  (in  perhaps  a  similar  variety  of  articles),  economic 
tendencies  and  laws  operate  to  give  individuals  generally  the 
kind  of  work  and  the  combination  of  lines  which  each  can  pur- 
sue to  the  best  advantage. 

Limitations  on  development.  The  peculiar  advantage  of  poultry 
culture  as  an  occupation  for  persons  with  small  capital  lies  in  its 
limitations,  —  in  the  usual  impossibility  of  developing  productive 
plants  on  a  large  scale.  This  is  a  line  of  production  in  which  most 
of  the  advantages  are  with  the  small  operator,  with  whom  it  is  an 
avocation.  It  is  a  branch  of  agriculture  requiring  so  little  capital 
for  a  beginning  that  even  the  poorest  may  make  a  start  in  it, 
giving  returns  quickly  and  regularly,  and  capable  of  rapid  exten- 
sion within  the  limits  favorable  to  economic  production.  Occasion- 
ally these  limits  admit  of  the  development  of  a  poultry  business, 
but  even  then  a  business  is  developed  only  by  those  able  to  use  the 
opportunity.  Many  who  do  well  with  poultry  on  a  small  scale  can- 
-  not  handle  a  large  stock  of  poultry  profitably,  and  so  cannot  use  an 
opportunity  to  build  up  a  business  when  open  to  them.  Usually 


28  POULTRY  CULTURE 

natural  and  economic  limitations  so  restrict  operations  that  after  a 
little  time  the  poultryman  ceases  to  use  his  surplus  earnings  to 
extend  operations  with  poultry,  and  applies  them  to  the  develop- 
ment of  some  other  interest.1 

A  farmer  in  New  York  state,  who  has  become  one  of  the 
wealthiest  men  in  his  section,  and  whose  reputation  as  a  poultry 
breeder  is  international,  once  told  the  author  that,  though  he  got 
his  start  with  poultry  and  had  always  made  what  poultry  he  kept 
pay  well,  he  would  consider  a  poultryman  very  foolish  who  would 
stick  to  poultry  exclusively,  even  though  making  it  pay  well,  be- 
cause there  are  so  many  other  lines  in  which  money,  ability,  and 
time  may  be  used  to  better  advantage. 

Permanent  poultry  culture  is  a  branch  of  agriculture.  This 
fact  the  poultry  keeper  and  the  student  of  poultry  matters  alike 
should  keep  ever  in  mind.  It  is  fundamental.  Remarkable  as  has 
been  the  growth  of  the  industry  in  modern  times,  the  financial  losses 
incidental  to  this  growth  have  reached  an  enormous  aggregate. 
The  greater  part  of  the  appalling  total  of  losses  in  poultry  keep- 
ing could  have  been  avoided  if  its  true  status  had  been  generally 
understood.  Until  very  recently,  the  most  conspicuous  feature  of 
the  exploitation  of  the  industry  was  the  widespread  and  persistent 
effort  to  develop  it  artificially,  —  following  manufacturing  methods 
and  ideas. 

The  common  result  of  the  use  of  intensive  methods  on  any  con- 
siderable scale  was  failure,  —  sometimes  after  temporary  or  partial 
success  had  encouraged  the  poultryman  to  continue  or  perhaps  to 
increase  operations.  There  were  exceptions  in  a  few  lines  (to  be 

1  Perhaps  the  best  general  illustration  of  this  point  that  could  be  given  is 
afforded  by  the  poultry  industry  in  such  European  countries  as  France  and  Bel- 
gium, which,  though  densely  populated,  export  considerable  quantities  of  poultry 
and  eggs.  The  interest  of  the  peasants  of  these  countries  in  poultry  is  often  cited  as 
showing  their  appreciation  of  the  possibilities  of  profit  from  poultry.  As  the  matter 
has  usually  been  stated,  it  is  made  to  appear  that  poultry  culture  is  of  paramount 
interest  in  the  lives  of  these  peasants ;  but  this  is  not  the  case.  Its  true  status 
was  shown  by  M.  Louis  Vander  Snickt  in  an  address  at  the  Second  National 
Poultry  Conference,  in  England,  in  1907,  when  he  made  the  statement  that 
"  the  more  careful  and  thrifty  "  of  the  Belgian  people  in  the  Campine  country 
ultimately  ceased  to  breed  poultry  and  engaged  in  horticulture.  They  made  this 
change  not  entirely  because  horticulture  was  more  profitable,  but  because  their 
land,  after  long  use  for  poultry,  became  unsuitable  for  poultry  and  adapted  to 
fruit  growing,  as  it  was  not  in  the  beginning. 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        29 

described  presently),  and  occasionally  instances  of  individuals  who, 
because  of  special  advantages,  were  able  to  make  a  living  when  the 
majority  failed,  or  because  they  were  satisfied  with  simpler  living. 
The  reasons  for  the  persistence  of  efforts  to  establish  poultry  plants 
on  intensive  lines,  notwithstanding  the  failures,  are  briefly : 

1 .  The  prevailing  tendencies  of  the  times  to  extend  the  appli- 
cation of  mechanical  ideas  in  all  pursuits,  to  carry  the  division  of 
labor  to  an  extreme,  and  to  specialize  in  production. 

2.  That  the  greatest  actual  production  is  obtained  by  intensive 
culture,  and  the  common  methods  of  reckoning  profits  make  it 
appear  that  profit  is  in  proportion  to  production. 

3.  That  large  projects  on  this  basis  are  extensively  exploited  in 
print,  both  in  advance  of  their  establishment  and  while  in  opera- 
tion, but  notice  of  their  abandonment  is  rarely  published. 

4.  That  persons  becoming  interested  in  the  financial  possibili- 
ties of  poultry  keeping  almost  invariably  turn  from  information  or 
advice  not  in  accord  with  their  wishes,  and  follow  an  alluring 
counsel,  regardless  alike  of  the  warnings  of  better  authorities,  of 
the  experience  of  others,  and  of  their  own  common  sense. 

With  such  potent  influences  operating  to  induce  men  to  exhaust 
both  capital  and  ingenuity  before  admitting  that  intensive  methods 
were  not  adapted  to  continuous  poultry  culture,  the  facts  as  to  the 
general  status  of  the  industry,  though  obvious  when  seen  from  a 
right  point  of  view,  secured  no  wide  recognition  until  the  effort  to 
establish  poultry  culture  on  an  intensive  basis  had  passed  its  cul- 
mination and  the  developments  along  natural  lines  had  reached  a 
stage  where  a  fair  general  comparison  of  results  plainly  showed 
that  permanent  poultry  culture  must,  as  a  rule,  be  part  of  a  diver- 
sified agriculture.  The  reasons  for  this  will  become  apparent  as 
the  subject  is  developed  in  this  book. 

Poultry  culture  is  a  necessary  feature  in  agriculture.  The 
various  kinds  of  poultry,  alike  in  their  general  adaptability  to  the 
land  and  to  conditions  of  agricultural  life,  are  so  different  in  struc- 
ture and  habits  that  full  utilization  of  the  opportunities  which  a 
farm  affords  for  the  profitable  production  of  poultry  nearly  always 
requires  the  keeping  of  more  than  one  of  the  common  kinds. 
Often  fowls,  turkeys,  ducks,  and  geese  may  all  be  kept  to  advan- 
tage. When  the  area  of  land  cultivated  is  too  small  to  be  called 


30  POULTRY  CULTURE 

a  farm,  the  best  possible  use  of  the  land  will  still,  in  most  instances, 
require  that  some  poultry  be  kept.  On  still  smaller  areas  poultry 
keeping  may  be  carried  on,  but  not  on  a  scale  or  under  condi- 
tions which  admit  of  maintaining  a  stock  at  normal  vigor  with- 
out frequent  renewals  from  outside  sources  where  conditions 
are  more  favorable. 

Poultry  culture  is  a  diversified  industry.  As  a  farm  usually 
affords  opportunity  for  the  production  of  the  common  kinds  of 
poultry,  so  in  nearly  all  localities  a  demand  is  found  for  all  kinds 
of  poultry  products.  In  many  places  the  local  production  of  some 
or  all  of  these  may  be  more  than  sufficient  to  meet  the  local  de- 
mand, and  this  is  the  case  in  most  sections  where  agriculture  is  the 
most  important  industry.  In  that  event,  production  for  shipment 
may  include  all  lines  or  be  limited  to  a  few  or,  in  rare  instances, 
to  one  line,  according  to  the  requirements  of  available  markets  and 
the  adaptation  of  local  conditions  to  special  lines  of  production. 
In  manufacturing  and  mining  sections,  and  in  the  vicinity  of  great 
cities,  the  local  production  meets  but  a  small  part  of  the  demand. 
In  such  sections,  and  especially  in  the  cities,  there  is  apt  to  be  a 
large  demand  for  poultry  products  of  a  kind  or  quality  for  which 
the  demand  in  small  places  is  too  limited  to  furnish  inducements 
to  local  producers.  In  the  nonagricultural  communities,  too,  the 
bulk  of  the  poultry  products  comes  from  a  distance  and  is  likely  to 
have  deteriorated  somewhat  before  reaching  the  consumer.  Hence 
near-by  products  of  good  quality  command  a  premium.  Under  such 
conditions  specialization  in  poultry  culture  may  be  carried  much  far- 
ther than  is  usually  profitable,  large  farms  may  be  devoted  almost 
wholly  to  poultry  keeping,  and,  if  climatic  and  soil  conditions  are 
favorable,  intensive  practice  may  be  followed  for  a  long  time  with- 
out marked  unfavorable  results. 

Branches  of  poultry  culture.  It  being  understood  that  poul- 
try keeping  is  rarely  an  exclusive  business,  and  that  in  practice 
two  or  more  branches  of  poultry  culture  are  usually  combined, 
the  various  lines  may  now  be  described.  Poultry  products  may 
be  divided  into  two  general  classes,  market  products  and  fancy 
products. 

The  market  products  of  poultry  are  eggs  and  meat,  with  feathers 
and  manure  as  by-products. 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        31 

Eggs  tised  for  food  are  almost  wholly  the  eggs  of  fowls,  the 
proportion  of  eggs  of  ducks,  geese,  and  turkeys  entering  into 
consumption  being  insignificant.  The  value  of  the  annual  pro- 
duction of  market  eggs  (mostly  hens'  eggs)  in  the  United  States 
equals  or  exceeds  the  total  value  of  the  meat  product  of  fowls, 
turkeys,  ducks,  and  geese.  The  production  of  eggs  for  food  is 
the  principal  branch  of  poultry  culture.  With  the  vast  majority 
of  poultry  keepers  it  is  the  prirrie  object,  other  lines  being 
incidental  or  supplementary.  Under  proper  conditions  even  a 
very  moderate  egg  yield  will  return  a  fair  profit  anywhere. 


FIG.  3.  An  egg  farm  near  Boston,  on  which  the  long  houses,  without  yards,  are 
grouped  near  the  dwelling,  and  the  fowls  range  over  the  farm 

Poultry  meat  used  for  food  is  produced  principally  from  fowls, 
though  large  quantities  of  all  other  kinds  of  poultry  are  used.  The 
bulk  of  the  crop  of  fowls  and  chickens  marketed  each  year  is  inciden- 
tal to  egg  production  to  this  extent :  Most  farmers  and  poultry  keep- 
ers maintain  laying  flocks  of  about  the  same  numbers,  or  slightly 
increasing,  from  year  to  year.  To  keep  these  flocks  at  the  most 
profitable  stage  of  productiveness  it  is  necessary  to  renew  annually 
from  one  half  to  nearly  the  entire  number  (according  to  the  breed). 
The  cockerels  not  required  for  breeding  and  the  old  stock  to  be 
turned  off  make  up  the  most  of  the  meat  of  the  fowls  used  for 
food.  A  large  part  of  this  stock  is  turned  off  at  the  convenience 
of  the  producer,  without  regard  to  market  conditions  or  demands. 
To  supply  special  demands,  particularly  at  seasons  when  there  is 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  4.    A  New  England  town  poultry  plant  built  up  in  spare  time 
Note  the  variety  in  houses 

little  poultry  on  the  market  and  prices  are  high,  poultry  keepers 
favorably  located  engage  in  specialties  like  the  growing  of  broilers 
and  roasters. 

Egg  farming  the  most  important  branch  of  poultry  culture.  As 
has  been  stated,  the  production  of  eggs  is  carried  on  principally  as  an 
incidental  line  in  general  farming.  In  most  cases  the  farm  flocks 
of  poultry  are  maintained  primarily  to  supply  the  household  with 
eggs  and  meat,  the  products  marketed  being  the  surplus  remaining 


FIG.  5.    Intensive  plant  on  a  Philadelphia  business  man's  country  place 
Land  area  small ;  investment  large ;  labor  costly 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 


33 


after  home  wants  are  satisfied.  Ordinary  farm  conditions  and 
methods  need  not  be  described  here,  but  some  of  the  special 
developments  along  this  line  must  be  described  as  to  their  general 
features,  though  discussion  of  these  features  will  come  more  appro- 
priately under  special  topics. 

Factory  methods  in  poultry  culture.  The  intensive  poultry 
plant  devoted  primarily  to  egg  production,  with  the  sale  of  market 
poultry  and  often  of  thoroughbred  stock  and  eggs  for  hatching  as 
accessories,  was  long  the  most  conspicuous  type  of  plant  classed  as 


FIG.  6.  Poultry  plant  of  A.  G.  Duston,  at  Marlboro,  Massachusetts.   Considered 
a  model  plant  when  built,  about  1890.    Used  about  ten  years,  then  moved  to 
South  Framingham,  Massachusetts,  and  rebuilt  on  an  extensive  plan.    (Photo- 
graph from  Mr.  Duston) 

an  "  egg  farm."  This  may  be  briefly  described  as  an  enlargement 
of  the  city  poultry  yard.  The  common  object  was  to  keep  the 
largest  possible  number  of  fowls  on  a  given  area,  keeping  them 
closely  confined  and  supplying  them  with  all  kinds  of  food  needed. 
Usually  the  land  accommodations  were  very  limited,  and  the  poul- 
tryman  made  no  effort  to  grow  any  food  —  except  perhaps  a  little 
green  food  —  or  to  make  any  use  of  his  land  except  for  poultry. 
This  was  the  typical  plant,  in  area  from  two  to  ten  or  twelve 
acres.  Often  the  larger  plots  had  little  more  actual  capacity  than 


34 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


plots  of  less  than  half  their  size,  because  the  character  of  much  of 
the  land  made  it  impossible  to  use  it  with  this  system.  These  plants, 
almost  without  exception,  used  artificial  methods  of  hatching  and 
brooding.  On  many  of  them  the  young  chickens  were  grown 
under  conditions  not  much  better  than  those  to  which  the  old 
stock  were  subjected.  On  others  conditions  for  the  young  stock 
were  made  as  favorable  as  available  land  would  permit.  Those 
operating  such  plants  generally  considered  it  necessary  to  renew 
practically  the  entire  stock  each  year.  Hence  it  was  necessary 
to  grow  each  year  about  twice  as  many  chicks  as  there  were  old 
birds  on  the  place,  which  is  difficult  to  do  in  a  restricted  area. 


FIG.  7.  The  poultry  plant  on  a  fine  estate  at  Goshen,  New  York,  combining 

both  intensive  and  extensive  features.  Buildings  very  expensive.  (Photograph 

from  Willowcrest  Farm) 

On  large  intensive  plants  it  was  necessary  that  much  of  the  labor 
employed  should  be  skilled  labor,  —  expert  in  handling  poultry 
under  highly  artificial  conditions  and  in  the  use  of  artificial  methods 
of  'hatching  and  brooding.  Plants  of  this  type  were  most  numerous 
from  1890  to  1900,  and  were  a  conspicuous  feature  in  southern 
New  England  throughout  that  period.  Elsewhere  they  were  not  so 
numerous,  though  the  total  number  throughout  the  country  was 
very  large.  The  prosperity  of  these  plants  was  generally  fictitious. 
Most  of  them  were  short-lived.  In  many  instances  good  profits  were 
made  for  a  year  or  perhaps  a  short  series  of  years,  but,  for  reasons 
which  will  be  stated  in  the  discussion  of  systems,  prosperity  was 
ephemeral  in  all  but  a  few  cases.  Unbiased  persons  familiar  with 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        35 

the  poultry  industry  now  generally  agree  that  this  type  of  plant 
cannot  be  maintained  on  a  large  scale  continuously.1 

Farm  methods.  Egg  farming  by  the  colony  system  has  been 
developed  on  an  extensive  scale  in  the  district  about  Little  Comp- 
ton,  Rhode  Island.  The  colony  plan  is  used  to  some  extent  in 
other  places,  but  in  this  district  almost  every  farm  makes  the 
keeping  of  poultry  for  eggs  a  specialty,  and  all  use  the  same  plan 
of  housing,  and  in  general  the  same  methods. 

By  the  colony  plan  the  stock  of  fowls  is  distributed  over  the  land 
in  small  flocks.  Ideally  the  system  is  to  move  the  houses  at  least 
once  a  year,  but  in  practice  they  are  usually  allowed  to  remain  in 
one  place  much  longer.  That,  however,  is  largely  dependent  upon 
the  convenience  of  the  farmer  and  upon  other  uses  which  he  may 
wish  to  make  of  the  land.  Land  good  for  other  purposes  is  not  as 
likely  to  be  continuously  occupied  by  poultry  as  land  which  cannot 
be  advantageously  cropped.  No  fences  are  used.2  The  houses  are 
frequently  placed  in  pastures,  and  it  is  not  unusual  to  see  fowls, 
geese,  and  cattle  in  the  same  pasture.  Houses  may  be  only  a  few 
rods  apart,  or  there  may  be  but  four  or  five  houses  (each  holding 
about  thirty-five  birds)  on  as  many  acres  of  land.  The  usual  prac- 
tice is  to  renew  about  half  the  stock  each  year.  This  requires  the 
rearing  of  not  many  more  chickens  each  year  than  there  are  old 

1  A  great  many  persons  who  profess  to  be,  or  are  by  some  considered,  competent 
to  speak  on  this  point  may  still  be  found  who  will  assert  that  this  statement  is 
incorrect,  and  cite  instances  of  large  intensive  plants  said  to  be  financially  success- 
ful.   To  the  author  as  a  poultry  journalist  trying  to  learn  and  make  public  the 
truth  about  such  things,  these  plants  and  the  claims  made  for  them  were  trouble- 
some, until  he  adopted  the  plan  of  declining  to  accept  the  existence  of  such  plants 
as  proof  of  the  value  of  their  methods  unless  the  plants  had  been  in  operation 
under  the  same  ownership  for  ten  years.    Other  tests  might  have  been  applied, 
but  this  was  found  sufficient.    With  the  exceptions  to  be  noted  in  this  chapter, 
instances  of  large  intensive  poultry  plants  in  operation  for  ten  years  under  the 
same  management  are  very  rare.    Of  those  started  with  large  capital  not  one  (so 
far  as  the  writer  can  remember  or  learn)  lasted  so  long.    This  fact  puts  the  bur- 
den of  proof  on  those  who  claim  to  succeed  by  such  methods.    The  reader,  if  not 
convinced,  by  what  he  learns  of  the  principles  of  poultry  keeping,  that  such  claims 
are  not  valid,  should  at  least  decline  to  accept  them  until  they  are  established  by 
evidence  beyond  dispute.    As  a  rule  the  reports  and  financial  statements  put  out 
are  incomplete,  inadequate,  and  therefore  essentially  false. 

2  Except  when  pullets  are  first  put  in  the  large  colony  houses,  when  a  small 
yard  is  made,  of  stakes  and  poultry  netting,  to  keep  them  from  wandering  off 
before  they  become  wonted  to  the  house. 


FIG.  8.  Field  showing  colony  system  at  Little  Compton,  Rhode  Island 


FIG.  9.  One  of  the  low  houses  in  Fig.  8.    When  cattle  are  in  the  pasture  the 
fence  is  adjusted  to  keep  them  from  the  hens'  food  and  water 


FIG.  10.  Colony  poultry  houses  on  the  farm  of  F.  W.  C.  Almy, 
Tiverton  Four  Corners,  Rhode  Island 

FEATURES   OF  THE   COLONY   SYSTEM   OF  EGG    FARMING 


FIG.  n.  William  Sisson's  dough  cart  on  its  morning  round.   Note  the  rocky  land 


FIG.  12.  Coops  for  young  chickens  on  the  farm  of  F.  W.  C.  Almy.    The  hens  are 
confined  to  the  coops  until  the  chickens  no  longer  need  brooding 


FIG.  13.  George  Butler's  dough  cart  returning  from  the  evening 
collection  of  eggs 

FEATURES   OF   THE   COLONY  SYSTEM   OF  EGG  FARMING 


FIG.  14.  Skids  attached  to  front  gear  of  wagon  used  for  moving  colony 
poultry  houses 


FIG.  15.  Bank  of  outdoor  nests  for  setting  hens,  at  north  side  of  building  in  Fig.  14 


FIG.  16.  Cookhouse,  with  drive  through  and  feedhouse  adjoining;  a  colony 

house  at  right 

FEATURES    OF  THE   COLONY   SYSTEM   OF   EGG   FARMING 

38 


FIG.  17.  A  common  style  of  coop 
for  chickens 


FIG.  18.  A  stack  gives  shade  at 
all  times 


FIG.  19.  Old-style  coop,  without 
windows 


FIG.  20.  Cookhouse  on  the  farm 
of  F.  W.  C.  Almy 


FIG.  21.  Bricked-up  set-kettle  for  FIG.  22.  Pullets  confined  when  first 

cooking  feed  put  in  laying  houses 

FEATURES  OF  THE  COLONY  SYSTEM  OF  EGG  FARMING 

39 


40  POULTRY  CULTURE 

birds  on  the  place.  Natural  methods  of  incubating  and  brooding 
are  used  almost  exclusively.  The  greater  part  of  the  grain  is  pur- 
chased, though  nearly  every  farmer  grows  a  few  hundred  bushels 
of  corn  each  year.  Inexpert  labor  is  largely  used,  and  much  of 
the  work  is  done  with  horse  and  wagon. 

By  the  methods  thus  briefly  outlined,  the  farmers  of  this  section 
make  "  egg  farming  "  continuously  profitable,  though  the  average 
profit  on  a  "  per  hen  "  basis  is  small.1 

The  Petaluma  district  in  California.  This  is  better  known,  by 
name  and  reputation,  to  the  general  public,  and  perhaps  also  to 
most  poultry  keepers,  than  the  district  just  described,  though  it  may 
be  doubted2  whether  the  developments  there  are  of  as  great  im- 
portance. In  many  respects  Petaluma  conditions  and  methods  are 
almost  opposite  those  used  in  the  Rhode  Island  colony  section.  In 
the  Rhode  Island  district  natural  methods  and  primitive  appliances 
are  used  almost  exclusively ;  the  Petaluma  industry  is  developed 
along  artificial  lines  and  uses  an  intensive  system.  Producing  for 
a  market  which  prefers  a  white  egg,  it  uses  the  White  Leghorn,  as 
do  the  egg  farms  supplying  the  New  York  market.  The  farms  are 
mostly  small, — from  five  to  ten  acres.  Instead  of  small  houses  placed 
far  apart,  larger  houses  in  groups  are  used.  Hatching  is  done  largely 
by  men  who  make  a  business  of  hatching  chicks  for  others.  The 
chicks  are  brooded  in  lots  of  many  hundreds.  An  incubator 

1  It  is  generally  difficult,  to  get  exact  figures.    I  have  been  told  of  profits  as 
high  as  $1.50  per  hen  for  flocks  of  400  to  500,  but  for  the  flocks  of  double  those 
numbers  and  upwards  the  best  estimates  I  can  get  from  the  farmers  place  average 
profits  estimated  on  the  "per hen  "  basis  at  about 80  cents  (ahead)  above  the  cost  of 
feed.   The  routine  work  of  caring  for  1200  to  1500  laying  hens  takes  about  three  or 
four  hours  of  the  time  of  an  unskilled  laborer,  employed  at  $20  or  $25  per  month, 
with  board.    Irregular  work  for  the  poultry  probably  brings  this  up  to  make  the  lay- 
ing hens  chargeable  for  about  half  the  wages  of  the  man  who  cares  for  them.   Other 
common  sources   of  income   on  these  farms  are  from  cockerels  and  old  hens 
marketed,  from  geese,  from  cows,  and  from  the  sale  of  hay.    Thus  the  net  cash 
income  on  a  farm  operated  by  one  man,  with  one  laborer  regularly  employed  and 
occasional  day  help,  may  be  very  much  larger  than  that  of  the  average  farmer  any- 
where. One  farmer  in  this  district,  who  maintains  a  stock  of  about  2000  laying  hens 
and  gives  little  attention  to  geese  or  cows,  has  made  the  statement  that  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  he  has  been  able  to  live  well  and  still  save  not  less  than  $1000  a  year. 

2  Not  being  personally  acquainted  with  the  Petaluma  district,  I  can  make  no 
positive  statements  in  regard  to  the  conditions  there.    Accounts  of  it  by  different 
persons  are  generally  more  or  less  contradictory,  and  accounts  by  the  same  person 
are  sometimes  inconsistent. 


FIG.  23.  The  houses  are  closely  grouped.    (Photograph  by  M.  A.  Jull) 


FIG.  24.  A  colony  of  500  White  Leghorns.    (Photograph  by  D.  J.  Lane) 


FIG.  25.  Twenty-five  hundred  fowls  on  seven  acres.    (Photograph  by  D.  J.  Lane) 


FEATURES   OF  THE   PETALUMA   POULTRY  DISTRICT 
41 


FIG.  26.  Fowls  on  range.    (Photograph  by  D.  J.  Lane) 


FIG.  27.  Brooder  houses  used  at  Petaluma.    (Photograph  by  M.  A.  Jull) 


FIG.  28.  Brooder  stove  to  provide          FIG.  29.  As  high  as  400  cases  of  eggs 

heat  for  1600  chicks.  (Photograph          a  day  shipped  from  this  store.  (Photo- 

by  D.  J.  Lane)  graph  by  D.  J.  Lane) 

FEATURES   OF  THE   PETALUMA   POULTRY   DISTRICT 

42 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        43 

manufacturer  has  been  the  moving  spirit  in  the  development  of  this 
industry  here,  and,  like  most  far-western  districts  famed  for  any 
product,  it  has  been  widely  exploited  by  real-estate  interests.  While 
the  product  is  different,  the  egg  farms  of  Petaluma  in  several  im- 
portant respects  resemble  the  soft-roaster1  farms  of  New  England 
mentioned  a  little  farther  on.  On  general  principles,  as  observed 
in  developments  elsewhere,  it  may  fairly  be  presumed  that,  while 
the  general  accounts  of,  and  claims  for,  the  industry  in  the  Peta- 
luma district,  and  for  the  methods  used  there,  are  somewhat 
exaggerated,  the  industry  as  developed  there  suits  the  existing 
conditions  and  gives  good  profits  to  a  fair  proportion  of  those  en- 
gaging in  it.  How  long  the  present  methods  will  continue  will 
depend  on  developments  beyond  the  district  quite  as  much  as  on 
conditions  in  it.  Almost  invariably,  specializing  in  poultry  keeping 
succeeds  only  for  a  short  time,  the  success  of  the  specialist  stimu- 
lating farmers  generally  to  give  more  attention  to  that  line,  and 
so  to  increase  the  supply  and  reduce  the  profits  of  the  specialist. 
Experience  in  other  places  also  indicates  that  after  a  time  the 
intensive  methods  used  at  Petaluma  must  be  modified. 

Broiler  farming.  Broiler  growing  as  a  specialty  began  to  attract 
a  great  deal  of  attention  about  1890.  Interest  developed  at  that 
period  as  a  result  of  sensational  stories  published  about  the  extent 
of  operations  in  this  line  in  and  about  Hammonton,  New  Jersey,  and 
the  large  profits  obtained.  Broiler  growing  in  this  vicinity  has  been 
carried  on  principally  as  a  winter  occupation  by  men  engaged  in 
fruit  culture,  gardening,  or  other  work  which  did  not  require  all 
their  time  at  that  season.  Their  operations  were  not  usually  on 
a  large  scale.  So  conducted,  the  "  business  "  brought  the  broiler 
grower  some  income  at  a  time  when  he  had  little  from  other  sources. 
When  his  results  were  unusually  good,  and  he  caught  the  market 
right,  his  profits  might  be  considerable,  but  the  average  profit  as 
stated  by  growers  who  kept  careful  accounts  was  only  about  twenty 
cents  a  bird.  Instances  were  cited  in  the  early  days  of  as  high  as 
$400  profit  in  one  season  on  a  broiler  plant  of  1000  capacity  run 
for  seven  months  in  trie  year. 

1  Chickens  specially  grown  to  be  marketed  as  roasters  are  disposed  of  by  the 
growers  while  the  flesh  is  soft ;  hence  the  term  «  soft  roaster,"  distinguishing  such 
from  the  ordinary  roasting  chickens,  which  are  often  hard-meated. 


44 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


The  facts  about  the  broiler  business  at  Hammonton  were  widely 
published,  but  as  usual  the  fictions  gained  wider  credence,  and 
for  some  ten  or  fifteen  years  big  broiler  plants  were  built  up  in 
various  parts  of  the  country,  many  of  them  undertaking  to  pro- 
duce broilers  the  year  round.  None  of  these  plants  succeeded, 


FIG.  30.  Soft-roaster  plant  of  Farrer  Brothers,  West  Norwell,  Mass. 

and  some  of  them  involved  their  owners  in  heavy  losses.  The 
most  celebrated  broiler  plant  was  that  known  as  the  "  Mary  L. 
Poultry  Plant,"  at  Sidney,  Ohio.  It  is  said  that  the  owner 
admitted  having  lost  over  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  on 
the  plant,  and  it  is  commonly  believed  among  poultrymen  that 
his  losses  were  very  much  larger.  In  recent  years  few  efforts 


FIG.  31.  Part  of  soft-roaster  plant  of  Henry  D.  Smith,  Hanover,  Mass. 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 

have  been  made  to 
establish  plants  exclu- 
sively for  the  produc- 
tion of  broilers.  Broiler 
growing  is  now  gener- 
ally assigned  its  proper 
place,  as  a  feature  in 
diversified  poultry  cul- 
ture or  as  a  specialty 
for  persons  whose  regu- 
lar occupation  will  al- 
low them  to  engage 
in  the  production  of 
broilers  in  winter. 

Roaster  growing.  A 
special  phase  of  poul- 
try culture  is  the  grow- 
ing of  large  roasting  chickens  for  the  early  summer  trade  in  the  large 
cities  and  pleasure  resorts.  It  has  been  carried  on  for  a  great  many 
years  in  a  small  way,  chiefly  by  people  in  the  vicinity,  of  Philadel- 
phia, its  standing  with  those  engaged  in  it  being  much  the  same  as 
that  of  broiler  growing.  The  roasters  grown  in  this  vicinity  became 


FIG.  32.  Fifty  half-grown  Light  Brahma  chickens  in 
house  6  ft.  x  8  ft.,  which  they  occupy  from  wean- 
ing to  maturity.    The  plan  works  well  for  winter 
chickens  marketed  before  hot  weather 


FIG.  33.  Colony  houses  for  winter  chickens.    (Continuing  Fig.  31) 


FIG.  34.  Soft-roaster  plant  of  Archie  Torrey,  Rockland,  Mass. 


FIG.  35.  Colony  house  for  winter 
chickens,  used  by  Farrer  Brothers 


FIG.  36.  Colony  house  for  winter 
chickens,  used  by  H.  D.  Smith 


FIG.  37.  Row  of  colony  houses  for  winter  chickens  on  the  farm  of 
E.  O.  Damon,  Hanover,  Mass. 

FEATURES   OF  THE   SOUTH   SHORE   SOFT-ROASTER  DISTRICT 

46 


FIG.  38.  Colony  house  for  winter 

chickens,  used  by  J.  H.  Curtiss, 

West  Norwell,  Mass. 


FIG.  39.  Incubator  cellar  built  into 

a  bank  on  plant  of  Samuel  Bates, 

West  Norwell,  Mass. 


FIG.  40.  Brooder  house  of  Farrer  Brothers,  West  Norwell,  Mass. 


FIG.  41.  H.  D.  Smith's  incubator  cellar;      FIG.  42.  Oil  barrel  and  tank  connect 
only  the  roof  aboveground  with  faucet  inside.    (Rear  of  Fig.  41) 

FEATURES   OF  THE   SOUTH   SHORE   SOFT-ROASTER  DISTRICT 

47 


48  POULTRY  CULTURE 

famous  in  Philadelphia  and  other  large  eastern  cities  as  "  Phila- 
delphia chickens."  It  seems  probable  that  this  line  was  carried  on 
in  the  same  way  by  a  few  people  near  other  large  cities  in  the  East, 
though  nothing  definite  can  be  learned.  A  few  years  previous  to 
1 890  it  began  to  develop  on  a  more  extensive  scale  in  the  vicinity  of 
Norwell,  Rockland,  Hanover,  and  other  towns  in  what  is  known  as 
the  South  Shore  district  of  eastern  Massachusetts,  and  soon  many 
people  in  these  towns  were  engaged  in  it,  some  on  a  small  scale, 
as  a  side  line,  others  giving  their  time  wholly  to  it  and  grow- 
ing from  2000  to  4000  or  5000  chickens  each  year.  The  profits 
on  this  line  of  production  were  considerable,  usually  estimated  at 
one  dollar  per  bird,  and  sometimes  a  great  deal  more  than  that  on 
the  smaller  lots. 

The  success  of  the  business  in  this  district  has  induced  many 
to  come  here  to  engage  in  it,  and  has  led  others  to  attempt  it 
elsewhere.  Efforts  to  develop  this  line  as  a  specialty  outside  the 
district1  have  almost  invariably  been  discontinued  at  an  early  stage 
because  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  fertile  eggs  for  hatching  at 
the  season  at  which  they  are  required.  Newcomers  in  the  dis- 
trict experience  some  of  the  same  difficulty,  because  the  most 
reliable  supplies  are,  as  a  rule,  known  and  engaged  by  the  growers 
acquainted  with  the  farmers  who  supply  the  eggs.  The  grower 
in  the  district  also  has  an  important  advantage  in  the  market- 
ing of  his  product, — a  point  which  will  be  more  fully  considered 
when  the  matter  of  cooperation  in  selling  is  discussed.  Artificial 
methods  of  incubating  and  brooding  are  used  by  all  growers 
producing  any  considerable  number  of  chickens,  and  skill  in 
handling  incubators  and  brooders  is  a  most  important  element 
in  success  in  this  line. 

Duck  growing.  This  is  the  one  branch  of  poultry  culture  in 
which  plants  of  large  capacity  have  been  successfully  developed. 
Factory  methods  have  been  applied  much  more  satisfactorily  in 
duck  growing  than  in  any  other  line  of  poultry  culture.  There  are 


1  From  the  quantities  of  soft  roasters  now  coming  to  Boston  in  small  lots, 
it  appears  that  an  increasing  number  of  poultrymen  in  other  places  in  the 
vicinity  are  growing  this  class  of  poultry  on  a  small  scale,  with  other  poultry 
lines.  The  effect  of  such  a  development  on  the  industry  in  the  soft-roaster 
section  remains  to  be  seen. 


FIG.  43.  Duck  farms  at  Speonk,  Long  Island.    The  Hallock  farm  No.  i  in  the 
foreground  ;  in  the  distance,  the  Wilcox  farm 


FIG.  44.  Another  view  of  Fig.  43.    There  are  25,000  to  30,000  ducks  in  sight 


FIG.  45.  Ducklings  on  Hallock  duck  farm  No.  2,  Center  Moriches,  Long  Island 

VIEWS   OF   LONG   ISLAND   DUCK   FARMS 

49 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  46.    Feeding  young  ducks  from 

track    over    pens    at    Hallock    duck 

farm  No.  i 


two  principal  reasons  for  this.    In  the  first  place  ducks  are  not  as 

sensitive  to  the  effects  of  filth  in  their  food  or  on  the  land  that  they 

occupy  as  are  fowls.  In  the  second 
place  they  are  less  disposed  to 
quarrel  among  themselves  than 
fowls,  turkeys,  and  geese.  There 
are  many  plants  in  the  eastern 
states  growing  from  5000  to 
10,000  or  12,000  ducks  a  year, 
a  number  growing  up  to  20,000, 
and  some  with  an  annual  pro- 
duction of  over  50,000.  One 
man  on  Long  Island  operates 
two  farms,  the  combined  annual 

output  of  which  is  about  75,000  to  80,000.    Duck  growing  as  a 

specialty  is  the  production  of  ''green"  ducks,  —  that  is,  young 

ducks  killed  at  about  ten  weeks 

of  age,  when  they  should  weigh, 

dressed,  five  to  six  pounds  each. 

Much  of   the  weight  at   this 

stage  is  soft  fat,  which  cooks 

away,  but  the  epicures  in  the 

cities  will  pay  as  much  for  the 

duck  at  this  age  as  later,  when 

a    greater    proportion    of    the 

weight  is  meat,  and  the  profit 

in  ducks  for  market  is  in  the 

"  green  "  duck.1 

This  line  of  duck  growing 

is  said  to  have  been  conducted 

on  a  relatively  large  scale  on 

Long  Island  since  before  1860. 

The  breed  of  ducks  used  prior 

to  the  introduction  of  the  Pekin 

duck  was  the  White  Muscovy. 

Until  about  1891  or  1892  the  ducklings  were  hatched  with  hens, 

and  the  largest  growers  raised  only  a  few  thousand.   Then  artificial 

1  The  marketmen  say,  "  The  green  duck  is  a  gold  brick." 


FIG.  47.    Track  through  feed  room  at 
Hallock  duck  farm  No.  i 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        51 

methods  were  introduced.  Since  that  time  the  business  has  devel- 
oped, sometimes  to  the  numbers  mentioned  above,  on  a  great 
many  farms  here  and  on  some  in  other  sections.  The  Long  Island 


FIG.  48.  View  of  Weber  Brothers'  duck  farm,  Wrentham,  Mass. 

duck  farms  are  quite  invariably  located  on  streams,  with  yards 
for  both  breeding  stock  and  growing  ducklings  extending  into  the 
water.  The  inland  duck  farms  usually  give  the  ducks  no  water 


FIG.  49.  Breeding  stock  at  Weber  Brothers'  duck  farm 

except  for  drinking  purposes.1    From  observation  of  conditions 
and  methods  on  coast  and  inland  duck  farms  the  author  is  of  the 

1  Mr.  James  Rankin,  in  his  "  Duck  Culture  "  (1897  edition),  stated  that  his  ducks 
seemed  to  have  lost  all  desire  for  water  for  other  purposes  than  drinking,  and  even 
the  texture  of  their  feathers  seemed  changed  so  that  they  would  no  longer  shed 
water.  I  did  not  find  this  the  case  with  stock  bought  of  Mr.  Rankin.  It  took  to 
the  water  at  the  first  opportunity  as  readily  as  any. 


FIG.  50.  Nursery  brooder  house  (200  feet  long) 


FIG.  51.  Baby  ducks  (one  week  old)         FIG.  52.  Baby  ducks  (two  weeks  old) 


FIG.  53.  Cold  brooder  house.    (Ducklings  three  weeks  old) 
BROODER  HOUSES  AT  WEBER  BROTHERS'   DUCK  FARM 

52 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 


53 


opinion  that  ducks  are  grown  with  less  labor  on  the  coast  farms ; 
but  it  would  be  a  very  difficult  matter  to  determine  any  point  of 
this  kind  in  a  comparison  which,  to  be  accurate,  would  have  to  con- 
sider the  personalities  of  the  proprietors,  as  well  as  other  points 


FIG.  54.  Fattening  sheds  at  Weber  Brothers'  farm.    (From  the  east) 

affecting  results.  Some  of  the  coast  farms  have  been  used  for  duck 
growing  for  over  half  a  century,  and  some  of  the  largest  inland  farms 
for  twenty-five  or  thirty  years.  When  developed  on  a  very  large 


FIG.  55.  Fattening  sheds  seen  in  Fig.  54.   Five  thousand  ducks  feeding. 
(From  the  west) 

scale,  duck  growing  is  usually  an  exclusive  business.  On  a  smaller 

scale  it  is  usually  combined  with  other  branches  of  poultry  culture. 

As  might  be  inferred  from  the  comparative  ease  of  developing 

the  business,  it  is  the  branch  of  poultry  culture  in  which  supply 


54 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


oftenest  overtakes  demand.  While  the  demand  grows  steadily, 
production  constantly  tends  to  more  rapid  increase.  As  a  result, 
in  the  history  of  duck  growing  there  has  been,  at  quite  regular 
intervals,  an  overproduction  followed  by  a  temporary  curtailment 
of  operations.  While  large  duck  plants  flourish  only  near  the 
markets  where  the  demand  is  good,  producers  of  market  poultry 


FIG.  56.  Central  grain  storehouse          FIG.  57.  Section  of  house  for  breeders 


FIG.  58.  Section  of  a  fattening  shed  FIG.  59.  Killing  and  packing  house 

BUILDINGS   ON  WEBER  BROTHERS*   DUCK   FARM 

everywhere  find  sale  for  some  ducks  at  good  prices,  and  when 
good  ducks  are  placed  on  a  market,  the  demand  rapidly  increases. 
Goose  growing.  Though  less  general  than  the  growing  of 
ducks,  goose  growing  is  carried  on  by  a  few  people  in  almost 
every  community.  Throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  country, 
geese  are  grown  in  these  scattered  (and  usually  small)  flocks, 
mainly  for  the  Christmas  market.  In  some  parts  of  the  East, 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE 


55 


notably  in  Rhode  Island  and  parts  of  southeastern  Massachusetts, 
the  growing  of  "  green  "  geese,  to  be  marketed  at  about  twelve 
weeks  of  age,  is  extensively  carried  on,  almost  every  farm  in  a 
community  growing  geese,  and  the  number  of  goslings  grown 
on  a  farm  sometimes  reaching  four  or  five  hundred,  though  the 
average  is  perhaps  less  than  half  as  many. 

The  colony  egg-farming  district  of  Rhode  Island  is  perhaps 
the  most  important  goose-growing  district  in  the  United  States. 
Goslings  are  usually  hatched  by  hens  (few  men  have  succeeded 


FIG.  60.  Flock  of  breeding  geese  in  a  Rhode  Island  pasture 
(Photograph  from  Isaac  Wilbour) 

in  hatching  the  eggs  by  artificial  means),  and  the  large  stocks  of 
laying  hens  kept  here  and  the  considerable  areas  of  pasture  land 
available  for  the  goslings  make  the  conditions  especially  favorable 
for  goose  growing  on  a  larger  scale  than  is  usual.  It  is  probable 
that  this  branch  of  the  industry  could  be  much  more  extensively 
developed  in  many  localities  than  it  is,  for  the  demand  is  increas- 
ing, and  good  geese  bring  high  prices  not  only  at  the  holiday 
season  but,  in  more  limited  quantities,  at  other  seasons. 

Goose  fattening  as  a  special  line  is  carried  on  by  some  men  in 
goose-growing  districts,  and  also  by  some  near  the  large  eastern 


FIG.  61.  Hen  with  brood  of  goslings        FIG.  62.  Three-weeks  goslings  grazing 


FIG.  63.  Captive  wild  geese  with 
goslings 


FIG.  64.  Wild  gander,  African  goose, 
'and  mongrel  goslings 


FIG.  65.  Geese  and  fowls  in  same 
pasture 


FIG.  66.  Feeding  and  watering 
fattening  geese 


FEATURES   OF   GOOSE   GROWING   IN   NEW  ENGLAND 

56 


FIG.  67.  Fattening  geese  on  pond  at  Cornell  Farm,  Adamsville,  Rhode  Island 


FIG.  68.  View  of  the  Austin  Farm,  Mansfield,  Massachusetts 


FIG.  69.  Fattening  geese  in  pens  on  the  Austin  Farm 

SCENES   ON  GOOSE-FATTENING  FARMS 

57 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


cities  who  are  engaged  in  buying  and  dressing  poultry.  The 
tendency,  however,  is  for  growers  to  fatten  their  own  geese,  hence 
the  fatteners  use  mostly  geese  from  districts  where  growers  are 
rather  indifferent  to  market  demands. 

Turkey  growing.  Although  much  more  generally  engaged  in 
than  goose  growing,  turkey  culture  is  another  branch  never  devel- 
oped on  a  large  scale.  Unlike  the  other  lines  mentioned,  special 


FIG.  70.  Bronze  turkeys  in  woods  at 

Simsbury,  Connecticut.  (Photograph 

from  Valley  Farm) 


FIG.  71.  Turkey  roost  in  shelter  of 

barn,  on  the  Horace  Miner  Farm, 

Westerly,  Rhode  Island 


FIG.  72.  A  family  of  White  Holland 
turkeys 


FIG.  73.  A  family  of  Black  Norfolk 
turkeys 


attention  to  turkey  growing  is  oftenest  found  in  the  western  states, 
and  production  in  the  East  steadily  decreases.  This  is  due  partly  to 
changed  labor  conditions  and  partly  to  the  fact  that  the  large  farms 
of  the  West  afford  conditions  more  favorable  to  the  keeping  of  large 
flocks  of  turkeys.  It  is  quite  commonly  believed  that  the  decline 
of  turkey  growing  in  the  East,  and  especially  in  Rhode  Island  and 
eastern  Connecticut,  where  it  was  once  an  important  industry,  is 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE        59 

due  to  the  prevalence  of  the  disease  known  as  blackhead.  That 
this  view  is  erroneous  is  evident  from  the  fact  that,  though  the 
industry  has  declined  in  districts  that  once  produced  many  turkeys, 
a  number  of  persons  continue  to  grow  them  as  successfully  as  ever. 

The  greater  part  of  the  annual  turkey  crop  now  comes  from 
the  Central  West  and  the  mountain  regions  of  the  South,  where, 
though  they  are  grown  in  smaller  flocks,  the  total  production  is 
large.  Vermont  and  parts  of  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  produce 
large  quantities  of  turkeys.  In  the  situations  most  favorable  to  it 
the  turkey  lives  largely  by  foraging  in  the  fields  and  woods  beyond 
the  range  usually  covered  by  fowls.  Turkeys  may  be  grown  in 
confinement,  but  not  profitably.  The  conditions  most  favorable  to 
their  production  include  good  range,  little  restriction  on  their  move- 
ments, and  still  enough  attention  to  provide  for  all  their  wants  and 
insure  protection  from  their  enemies.1 

Other  kinds  of  poultry.  Peafowls,  guineas,  pheasants,  swans, 
and  ostriches  are  not  of  general  economic  importance,  though 
there  are  a  few  breeders  of  pheasants  and  ostriches  growing  them 
on  quite  a  large  scale. 

Fancy  poultry.  Breeding  fancy  poultry  is  principally  the  pro- 
duction of  fowls  for  exhibition.  The  interest  in  other  kinds  of  poul- 
try for  this  purpose  is  far  less  general  and  less  intense.  As  a 
rule,  competition  in  turkeys,  ducks,  and  geese  is  not  keen.  In  the 
rarer  varieties  there  is  almost  no  competition,  most  of  the  displays 
being  for  exhibition  only.  They  are  rarely  seen  except  at  shows 
of  considerable  importance,  and  even  the  managers  of  these  often 
find  it  difficult  to  get  as  many  of  them  as  they  wish,  to  add  to  the 
variety  of  the  exhibit. 

1 1  have  made  several  visits  to  the  turkey-growing  district  about' Westerly,  Rhode 
Island,  and  have  interviewed  many  turkey  growers  there  and  in  other  parts  of  the 
East  in  regard  to  the  causes  of  the  decline  in  turkey  growing  in  this  section.  The 
views  of  two  middle-aged  women  who  had  been  successful  turkey  growers  from  girl- 
hood seem  to  me  to  sum  up  the  matter.  One  of  these,  when  asked  what  difference 
there  was  between  her  methods  and  those  of  her  unsuccessful  neighbors,  who 
averred  that  she  knew  the  secret  of  raising  turkeys,  said,  "  The  only  difference 
I  can  see  is  that  I  am  more  careful  to  look  after  my  turkeys  in  bad  weather,  when 
they  need  attention."  The  other,  when  asked  to  what  she  attributed  the  decline  in 
turkey  growing,  replied,  "  The  men  on  the  farms  are  now  more  interested  in 
other  things,  especially  gardening,  while  the  girls  as  they  grow  up  usually  leave 
the  farm  and  go  to  work  in  city  stores  or  in  factories  or  hotels ;  so  that  the  class 
of  labor  that  was  abundant  years  ago  is  now  almost  gone." 


6o 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  74.  A  pheasantry  in  the  suburbs  of  Boston.    (Photograph  from 
E.  F.  Conness) 

The  breeding  of  fowls  for  fancy  points  engages  the  attention 
of  many  thousands  of  people.  The  greater  number  of  these  breed 
on  a  small  scale  and  primarily  for  their  own  pleasure  and  recrea- 
tion, but  many  give  all  their  time  to  it  and  have  considerable  capi- 
tal invested  in  the  business.  Nearly  all  make  some  effort  to  sell 

stock  and  eggs  for 
hatching.  The  profits 
in  this  line  of  poultry 
culture  are  much  less 
than  is  generally  sup- 
posed. Competition  is 
strong  and  the  cost  of 
doing  business  is  large 
in  proportion  to  the 
volume  of  business. 
The  seasons  for  the 
sale  of  stock  and  eggs 
are  short,  and  sales 
are  much  affected  by  outside  influences.  Only  a  small  proportion 
of  breeders  engaged  in  this  line  make  more  than  a  living,  and  a 
considerable  number  of  the  breeders  most  prominent  at  any  time 


FIG.  75.  Breeding  pens  of  phe 
in  same  yard 


>wls 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE   6 1 

are  men  who  are  trying  to  build  up  a  business  on  capital  accumu- 
lated from  something  else.  No  business  started  in  this  way  has 
ever  continued  long.  As  in  "  practical "  poultry  keeping,  those 
who  succeed  are  men  who  have  built  up  a  business  from  small 
beginnings  and  understand  it  thoroughly.  The  others  usually  lose 
money  a  great  deal  faster  than  the  successful  ones  make  it.  It  is  not 
unusual  for  men  with  capital,  embarking  in  fancy  poultry  culture,  to 
sink  in  a  year  an  amount  which  would  represent  more  than  the  total 
wealth  of  most  poultrymen  who  are  making  money  with  poultry. 


FIG.  76.    Young  China  pheasants.    (Photograph  from  Simpson's  Pheasant 
Farm,  Corvallis,  Oregon) 

Profitable  combinations  in  poultry  culture.  Combinations  are 
usually  made  to  suit  the  poultryman  and  his  circumstances.  As  far 
as  the  birds  are  concerned,  with  room  and  suitable  locations  and 
arrangements  for  all,  nearly  all  kinds  might  be  kept  on  one  tract 
of  land  under  one  management.  But  poultry  keepers  are  not  equally 
interested  in  or  adapted  to  the  different  lines  of  work  with  poultry. 
Whatever  the  original  plan  may  be  in  any  case,  ultimately  the  work 
is  developed  along  the  lines  that  the  poultryman  can  make  most 
profitable,  and  usually  consists  of  one  principal  line  with  several 
others  incidental.  The  combination  of  market  and  fancy  poultry 


62 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  77.  Colony  of  young  pheasants  in  an  oat  field 
(Photograph  from  Simpson's  Pheasant  Farm) 


culture  is  general,  sometimes  one,  sometimes  the  other,  being  of 
primary  importance.    Naturally  it  is  oftenest  the  market  lines  that 

are  considered  first,  but 
if  the  poultryman  de- 
velops special  skill  as 
a  breeder  and  salesman, 
the  relative  positions  of 
the  two  lines  may  soon 
be  reversed. 

Profitable  combina- 
tions with  poultry  cul- 
ture. Poultry  culture 
is  a  necessary  feature  in 
diversified  agriculture 
that  develops  all  the 
possibilities  of  the  or- 
dinary farm.  Poultry  should  be  considered  as  a  crop  which,  accord- 
ing to  circumstances,  may  be  grown  in  rotation  with  vegetable  crops 
or  in  a  system  of  double  cropping.  All  special  branches  of  agricul- 
ture afford  opportunities  for  profitable  combinations  with  poultry. 

Supply  and  demand.  To  many  the 'question  of  overproduction 
seems  a  most  important  one.  An  industry  open  to  every  one  and 
capable  of  rapid  exten- 
sion from  small  begin- 
nings appears  at  first 
thought  one  in  which 
frequent  periods  of  over- 
production are  likely  to 
occur.  In  general,  how- 
ever, such  conditions 
operate  to  check  over- 
production and,  when 
it  does  occur,  to  quickly 
restore  the  balance  be- 
tween demand  and  sup- 
ply. There  are  other 
factors,  too,  such  as  transportation  and  cold-storage  facilities,  which 
have  served  to  equalize  demand  and  supply.  An  overproduction  in 


FIG.  78.  Silver  pheasant  feeding.    (Photograph 
from  Simpson's  Pheasant  Farm) 


ECONOMIC  ASPECTS  OF  POULTRY  CULTURE       63 

one  locality,  or  an  excess  of  receipts  in  one  market,  is  always  (if  the 
goods  are  in  good  condition)  taken  care  of  either  by  transfer  to  other 
points  or  by  storage  until  receipts  decrease  in  volume.  Again,  since 
so  large  a  proportion  of  the  general  supplies  of  poultry  and  eggs  sent 
to  the  markets  are  the  surplus  of  flocks  kept  primarily  to  supply 
home  requirements,  any  unusual  reduction  in  prices  is  likely  to  be 
promptly  followed  by  increased  home  consumption,  as  well  as  by 
increased  market  consumption,  while  on  farms  where  the  cost  of 
food  is  not  an  important  item,  large  flocks  may  be  held  for  weeks 
or  months.  It  is  only  in  special  lines  like  duck  growing  that 
overproduction  seriously  affects  growers.  Even  in  these  the  effects 
hardly  ever  continue  for  more  than  one  season. 


PART  II.  PRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE  POULTRY  KEEPER'S  PROBLEMS 

The  poultry  keeper,  as  distinguished  from  the  breeder  and 
fancier,  is  the  producer  of  poultry  and  eggs  for  table  purposes, 
either  for  home  use  or  for  market.  Theoretically  the  poultry  keeper 
should  be  a  breeder,  if  not  a  fancier ;  but  as  a  matter  of  fact  the 
proportion  who  merit  that  description  is  insignificant.  Broadly 
considered,  the  function  of  the  plain  poultry  keeper  is  to  take  the 
ordinary  stocks  of  poultry  as  they  run,  and  produce  from  them  the 
poultry  products  that  the  country  uses. 

Common  tasks  of  the  poultry  keeper  are  easy.  In  his  routine 
work  he  finds  few  things  in  themselves  difficult.  The  troubles  of 
those  who  find  poultry  keeping  an  unending  series  of  puzzling 
problems  are  mostly  due  to  efforts  to  get  certain  results  with 
factors  which  cannot  give  them,  or  by  the  use  of  unnecessarily 
complicated  methods. 

Hard  problems  in  poultry  culture.    The  complex  problems  - 
those  which  involve  a   number  of  comparatively  simple  matters 
difficult  to  adjust  to  the  end  desired  —  are  relatively  hard.    A  few 
examples  will  show  the  difference  between  common  (or  simple) 
and  complex  problems. 

The  housing  of  an  ordinary  small  flock  is  a  simple  problem. 
Equally  satisfactory  results  might  be  obtained  in  any  of  a  dozen 
different  types  of  houses.  The  arrangement  of  the  houses  for  a 
large  stock  of  fowls  on  a  certain  piece  of  land  is  a  complex  prob- 
lem. The  arrangement  must  be  adapted  to  the  lay  of  the  land 
and  also  to  methods  of  feeding  and  management.  Differences  in 
houses,  also,  which  are  immaterial  when  small  numbers  are  kept 
may  have  to  be  considered  when  many  buildings  are  used.  The 
feeding  of  a  flock  of  hens  in  laying  condition  is  a  simple  matter ; 

64 


THE  POULTRY  KEEPER'S  PROBLEMS       65 

the  handling  of  a  stock  of  hens  to  have  them  in  laying  condition 
when  eggs  are  most  in  demand  is  a  complex  problem.  Mating  with 
a  view  only  to  the  reproduction  of  the  species  is  an  extremely 
simple  matter,  accomplished  by  allowing  males  and  females  to  come 
together ;  mating  to  preserve  or  improve  breed  or  other  desirable 
characters  is  a  highly  complex  problem. 

Hard  problems  may  be  easy  if  worked  out  step  by  step.  The 
tendency  of  poultry  keepers  is  to  go  too  fast,  and  get  into  posi- 
tions where  they  are  confused  by  the  variety  of  little  problems 
pressing  for  solution.  It  seems  the  hardest  thing  in  the  world 
for  enthusiasts  beginning  to  specialize  in  this  line  to  heed  the 
oft-repeated  warning,  to  "go  slow."  When  poultry  is  kept  merely 
from  custom,  and  no  special  efforts  are  made  to  increase  the  flock, 
natural  and  environmental  causes  and  conditions  cooperate  to  keep 
the  numbers  about  the  same  from  year  to  year,  and  the  question 
of  taking  care  of  a  large  increase  hardly  ever  arises.  But  when 
poultry  are  kept  with  a  purpose,  and  for  the  greatest  possible  profit 
under  existing  conditions,  everything  influencing  the  result  sought 
must  be  adapted  and  adjusted  to  it.  In  many  cases  preparation 
for  the  work  of  one  season  must  begin  with  the  preceding  season, 
or  even  earlier.  An  unsuccessful  hatching  season  will  certainly 
affect  the  egg  crop  of  the  next  season,  and  may  affect  the  breed- 
ing and  hatching  results  of  the  following  year.  Delay  in  getting 
pullets  into  winter  quarters  may  postpone  laying  for  months. 
Neglect  to  provide  ample  coop  room  for  chickens  as  they  grow  may 
cause  heavy  losses  and  retard  the  development  of  chicks  that  sur- 
vive. A  sick  bird  not  promptly  removed  from  the  flock  may  spread 
a  contagious  disease  which  will  ruin,  for  breeding  purposes,  all  birds 
of  the  flock  affected,  even  though  they  recover  and  may  be  used  for 
other  purposes.  Conditions  over  which  the  poultry  man  has  no  con- 
trol, or  only  partial  control,  may  also  unfavorably  affect  his  results. 

With  so  many  contingencies  to  consider,  an  experienced  poul- 
tryman  rarely  plans  for  a  large  increase,  in  one  season,  over  the 
preceding  season.  The  novice  who  does  so  rarely  succeeds  in  doing 
more  than  make  such  advance  as  the  expert  would  consider  it  wise 
to  project.  Not  infrequently  he  fails  to  maintain  his  original  num- 
bers, simply  because  he  undertook  more  than  he  knew  how  to  do 
and  look  after  every  detail  at  the  right  time  in  the  right  way. 


66  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Problems  are  simplified  by  keeping  as  close  to  natural  conditions 
as  is  consistent  with  the  object  sought.  The  application  of  this 
precept  is  much  wider  than  at  first  appears.  It  applies  to  stock,  — 
that  is,  to  the  type  of  bird;  the  "business  type"  of  bird  for  any 
purpose  is  a  plain  type  —  the  original  type  improved  and  modified 
with  reference  to  use  only.  Large  combs  and  crests,  and  feathers 
on  legs  and  feet,  are  superfluous  features  which  complicate  the 
work  of  caring  for  the  birds  and  limit  their  adaptability.  It  applies 
to  housing  ;  the  house  that  provides  only  shelter  from  the  elements 
requires  least  attention  from  the  keeper,  and  the  fowls  in  it  are 
more  thrifty.  It  applies  to  feeding  ;  under  natural  or  approximately 
natural  conditions  feeding  ceases  to  be  a  problem.  It  applies  to 
breeding ;  in  nature  the  fittest  to  live  survive  to  reproduce  their 
kind.  The  poultry  keeper  who  systematically  breeds  from  vigorous 
birds  retains  and  improves  characters  dependent  upon  constitutional 
vigor  much  more  surely  than  one  who,  in  breeding  for  those  charac- 
ters, uses  specimens  in  which  they  are  more  highly  developed  but 
which  are  deficient  in  constitution.  It  applies  to  incubation  and 
brooding ;  although  artificial  methods  are  necessary  in  some  lines, 
and  perhaps  better  for  some  persons  or  in  some  cases,  as  a  rule  it 
is  very  much  easier  to  grow  poultry  by  natural  methods  in  the 
natural  season.  It  applies  to  hygiene ;  under  natural  conditions 
little  attention  need  be  given  to  sanitary  condition  of  houses,  coops, 
or  soil,  while  under  intensive,  unnatural  conditions  these  things 
require  constant  attention.  Its  application  might  be  shown  in  fur- 
ther illustrations,  but  these  cover  the  points  to  be  considered  in 
this  section.  In  no  way  can  the  poultry  keeper  so  effectively  sim- 
plify his  problems  and  make  his  work  easier  from  the  start  as  by 
keeping  as  close  as  practicable  to  natural  conditions. 

Problems  in  practice  may  be  essentially  different  from  corre- 
sponding theoretical  problems.  The  theoretical  treatment  of  a 
subject  (as  of  housing  or  feeding)  is1  general,  its  object  being  to 
furnish  information  which  will  enable  each  one  who  uses  it  to 
determine  what  style  of  house  or  what  method  of  feeding  is  best 
suited  to  his  needs.  The  problems  of  housing,  feeding,  etc.,  as 
already  stated,  are  complex  problems.  At  the  point  of  application 
the  nature  of  the  problems  changes.  Theoretically  they  become 
simple,  practically  they  become  complex. 


THE  POULTRY  KEEPER'S  PROBLEMS       67 

For  example,  take  the  matter  of  selecting  a  breed  or  variety 
and  securing  stock  of  that  kind.  Intelligent  selection  must  be  based 
on  a  general  knowledge  of  breeds  and  varieties.  After  the  choice  is 
made,  the  selection  of  stock  would  be  a  very  simple  matter  if  all 
stock  of  the  kind  desired  were  of  the  same  quality.  But  since  this 
is  not  the  case,  the  selection  of  stock  often  becomes  a  most  per- 
plexing matter,  because,  while  the  general  average  of  characteristics 
of  a  breed  or  variety  as  it  may  be  described  in  a  textbook  is  fairly 
constant,  the  quality  of  the  stocks  of  individual  breeders  is  variable, 
both  in  different  stocks  and  in  the  same  stock.  A  good  decision  as 
to  the  kind  of  stock  required,  the  type  of  house,  or  the  method 
of  feeding  may  be  made  by  a  novice  after  a  little  study  of  any  of 
these  matters.  The  building  of  the  house  then  becomes  a  question 
of  his  skill  in  carpentry  (if  he  builds  it  himself).  Learning  to  use  the 
ration  selected  becomes  a  question  of  feeding  it  for  a  little  while 
according  to  general  directions,  then  gradually  modifying  to  suit  his 
stock  and  conditions.  But  to  secure  such  stock  as  he  wants,  it  may 
be  necessary  for  him  to  buy  and  discard  in  succession  the  stock  of 
several  different  breeders. 

To  get  suitable  foundation  stock  is  the  beginner's  most  difficult 
problem.  This  is  as  true  for  the  beginner  who  only  wants  good 
utility  stock  as  for  one  who  wants  exhibition  stock.  It  should,  how- 
ever, afford  some  consolation  to  the  beginner  disappointed  in  re- 
sults of  purchases  of  stock  to  know  that  the  problem  of  maintaining 
high  standards  of  quality  or  performance,  either  within  his  own 
breeding  lines  or  by  judicious  introduction  of  new  blood,  is  the 
greatest  and  most  difficult  problem  of  the  expert  breeder.  The 
novice  will  usually  get  his  experience  and  his  final  start  with  suit- 
able stock  more  cheaply  if,  following  the  policy  of  the  old  breeder, 
he  buys  stock1  only  on  inspection  or  approval,  selecting  or  ac- 
cepting only  stock  that  is  evidently  thrifty  and  in  good  condition, 

1  Whether  to  buy  stock  or  eggs  is  usually  considered  a  moot  question.  Per- 
sonally, from  experience  and  observation,  I  believe  it  is  better  for  the  beginner  to 
buy  stock  for  breeding,  if  for  no  other  reason  than  because  by  so  doing  he  gains  a 
year's  experience  in  breeding.  He  may  buy  eggs  also,  if  he  can  handle  more  young 
stock  than  his  breeders  will  produce,  or  if  he  wishes  to  get  a  line  on  the  quality  of 
the  stock  breeders.  Experienced  poultrymen  (soft-roaster  growers  excepted)  do 
not  depend  on  purchased  eggs  for  hatching,  and  even  among  soft-roaster  growers 
the  practice  of  buying  eggs  is  decreasing. 


68  POULTRY  CULTURE 

well  grown  and  well  developed  for  its  age  and  kind,  free  from 
serious  faults,  and  of  fair  quality  according  to  American  Poultry 
Association  standards.  The  descriptions  of  breeds  and  varieties 
in  Part  III  will  enable  him  to  estimate  the  quality  of  stock  with 
sufficient  accuracy  for  his  purpose.  He  should  on  no  account  ac- 
cept a  bird  that  shows  any  indication  of  ill  health.  If  buying 
young  birds,  he  should  take  only  those  that  are  full  grown,  espe- 
cially avoiding  birds  said  to  be  late  hatched.  Such  birds  are  most 
likely  to  be  undersized  specimens  from  early  hatches.  In  any  case 
the  novice  should  avoid  the  late-hatched  birds  ;  some  of  them  make 
valuable  breeders  in  their  second  breeding  season,  but  they  are  of 
little  service  during  the  first  season.  As  a  rule  he  will  find  it  better 
to  buy  near  home,  as  he  would  buy  a  horse  or  a  cow.  The  com- 
paratively low  cost  of  transportation  for  poultry  tempts  many  to 
buy  at  a  distance,  of  breeders  who  advertise  extensively,  but  one 
is  much  surer  of  getting  good  stock  of  the  kind  under  considera- 
tion if  he  buys  the  best  that  he  can  find  in  his  vicinity.  Without 
being  extravagant  the  novice  should  be  willing  to  pay  a  fair  price 1 
for  suitable  stock,  not  only  because  it  is  designed  to  be  foundation 
stock,  but  also  for  the  following  important  reasons  : 

1.  He  cannot  do  good  work  without  good  stock.    An  expert 
may.    Every  problem  of  the  poultry  keeper  is  made  more  difficult 
when  the  stock  is  weak  or  in  any  way  unsuitable  for  the  purpose 
for  which  it  is  used. 

2.  Rugged,  vigorous  stock  will  stand  mishandling  when  weak 
stock  will  not.    With  the  best  of  intentions  a  novice  is  likely  to 
make  some  mistakes  tending  to  the  detriment  of  his  stock.    From 
humane   as   well   as   from   economic  considerations  the  beginner 
should  select  stock  of  great  vitality. 

1  The  price  will  depend  much  on  the  reputation  of  the  breeder.  A  breeder 
with  no  general  reputation  will  often  sell  at  a  dollar  each  birds  that  could  not  be 
bought  from  a  breeder  of  wide  reputation  for  less  than  five  dollars.  Those  figures 
fairly  represent  the  range  of  relative  prices.  One  who  finds  birds  to  suit  him  at 
the  lower  price  is  fortunate,  but  if  the  low-priced  birds  do  not  suit,  he  had  better 
pay  the  higher  figures  and,  if  his  means  are  limited,  take  a  smaller  number  of  birds. 


CHAPTER   V 

POULTRY  TYPES  AND  THEIR  RELATIONS  TO  OBJECTS,  CONDITIONS, 
AND  METHODS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING 

Reference  has  been  made  to  the  influence  of  certain  types  of 
poultry  on  the  development  of  the  industry.  It  is  necessary,  before 
questions  of  location,  equipment,  and  methods  are  taken  up,  to 
consider  some  properties  of  type  which  bear  on  these  questions. 

What  is  type  ?  As  used  by  poultrymen  in  a  general  sense  the 
term  v'  type  "  denotes  a  fixed  combination  of  qualities  especially 
adapted  to  definite  results  (as  meat  type,  egg  type,  general- 
purpose  type,  game  type),  these  being  the  distinct  types  of  fowls 
to  which  nearly  all  breeds  and  varieties  may  be  referred. 

Type  and  breed.  In  a  state  of  nature  birds  of  the  same  kind 
living  under  the  same  conditions  are,  as  a  rule,  of  a  common  type. 
They  are  of  approximately  the  same  size  and  color,  and  so  nearly 
alike  that  individuals  are  not  easily  distinguished.  The  type  of  the 
wild  bird  is  fixed  by  natural  selection.  The  individual  which  in  any 
character  differs  greatly  from  the  ordinary  type  is  less  likely  to 
live  and  produce  offspring ;  and  when  it  does,  the  chance  of  its 
meeting  with  a  mate  like  itself  is  remote.  Variation  always  tends 
to  be  modified  or  lost  in  the  common  type. 

When  birds  are  brought  into  domestication,  variations  occur  more 
frequently,  and  the  conditions  of  the  bird's  life  in  domestication 
prevent  the  general  destruction  of  individuals  which  depart  from 
the  usual  type.  As  a  result  of  the  preservation  of  variations,  and 
of  miscellaneous  unions  of  individuals  diverging  from  the  general 
type  in  many  characters,  a  species  in  domestication  soon  reaches 
a  condition  of  mongrelism,  the  original  combination  of  characters 
becoming  very  rare,  or  perhaps  entirely  disappearing,  and  no  fixed 
combination  replacing  it. 

Among  the  numerous  types  occurring  in  a  mongrelized  species 
some  are  more  serviceable  than  others  and  some  more  pleasing  to 
the  eye  of  the  owner.  For  one  or  both  of  these  reasons  a  particular 

69 


7o  POULTRY  CULTURE 

type  may  become  a  preferred  type.  Such  a  type  may  closely  re- 
semble, either  in  general  or  in  some  conspicuous  characters,  the 
wild  type,  or  it  may  be  very  different.  Whatever  the  type,  by  con- 
tinuous breeding  of  males  and  females  nearest  that  type,  it  may 
in  a  few  generations  become  so  well  established  as  to  reproduce 
itself  quite  as  uniformly  as  the  original  wild  stock.  Such  a  type, 
as  distinguished  from  mongrel  stock  of  its  kind,  is  called  a  breed. 
The  number  of  breeds  which  may  be  developed  within  a  species 
is  theoretically  unlimited.  Practically  it  is  limited  by  the  difficulty 
that  most  people  experience  in  properly  differentiating  between 
types  not  strikingly  dissimilar. 

Breed  type.  A  breed  type  may  be  described  as  a  well-established 
artificial  combination  of  characters  peculiar  to  part  of  a  domesti- 
cated species,  plainly  differentiating  it  from  the  rest  of  the  species. 
True  breed  characters  are  very  few  in  number.  The  basis  of  breed 
type  is  form.  Poultrymen  say,  "  Shape  makes  the  breed."  Charac- 
ters determining  breed  type  are  size,  shape  of  body,  proportions,  and 
adjustments  to  the  body  of  head,  neck,  wings,  legs,  and  tail.  The 
length  and  texture  of  the  plumage  and  the  color  of  the  skin  are 
also  features  of  breed  type. 

Breed  divisions.  Birds  of  the  same  breed  type  may  differ  in 
superficial  characters,  such  as  color  of  plumage,  shape  of  comb, 
presence  or  absence  of  superfluous  feathering  on  head  or  feet.  By 
such  differentiation  within  a  breed  varieties  are  established.  Varie- 
ties, again,  may  be  divided,  according  to  some  minor  character, 
into  stibvarieties. 

Breed  relations.  Breed  (and  variety)  types  distinct  in  appearance 
may  still  be  so  similar  in  everything  affecting  usefulness  that  they 
are  equally  well  adapted  to  the  general  conditions  of  a  region  or  to 
prevailing  market  requirements,  and  are,  on  the  whole,  equally  serv- 
iceable. Such  similar  breeds  constitute  a  class.  In  the  selection 
of  poultry  for  a  particular  location  or  purpose  class  type  is  the 
major  consideration ;  breed  and  variety  characters  are  of  minor 
importance. 

Economic  classification  of  fowls.  Among  the  numerous  breeds, 
varieties,  and  subvarieties  of  fowls  are  found  three  principal  class 
types,  commonly  known  as  the  meat  type,  the  egg  type,  and  the 
general-purpose  type.  It  is  not  necessary  here  to  assign  to  each 


METHODS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  7! 

and  every  known  breed  a  place  in  one  or  another  of  these  classes. 
Only  the  more  familiar  breeds  need  be  mentioned. 

The  meat  type.  The  best  examples  of  this  type  are  the  Brahmas, 
Cochins,  and  Langshans,  comprising  the  Asiatic  class  of  the 
fanciers. 

The  egg  type  is  most  commonly  represented  by  the  Leghorns, 
.  though  Minorcas,  Andalusians,  and  Anconas  are  well-known  mem- 
bers of  the  class.  These  breeds,  with  the  Spanish,  constitute  the 
Mediterranean  class  of  the  fancier.  The  so-called  Dutch  and  Polish 
classes  are  of  substantially  the  same  type. 

The  general-purpose  type  is  an  intermediate  between  the  meat 
and  egg  types.  The  Plymouth  Rocks,  Wyandottes,  and  Rhode 
Island  Reds,  known  to  fanciers  as  the  American  class,  are  the 
principal  breeds  of  this  class  in  this  country.  The  English  Orping- 
ton is  of  the  same  general  type  and  economically  belongs  to  the 
same  class  as  the  three  American  breeds  mentioned. 

Class  properties.  The  designations  of  the  different  classes  indi- 
cate in  a  general  way  their  class  characters,  but  taken  too  literally 
these  terms  may  be  misleading.  Such  terms  as  "meat  type"  and 
"egg  type  "  do  not  mean  that  the  bird  is  adapted  to  one  purpose  to  the 
exclusion  of  the  other.  They  merely  describe  dominant  tendency. 

The  Brahma,  the  most  popular  representative  of  the  meat  type, 
grows  to  a  large  size,  furnishing  abundance  of  meat,  and  remains 
soft-meated  until  well  matured,  furnishing  the  somewhat  rare  combi- 
nation of  tender  flesh  in  a  large  carcass.  The  tendency  at  maturity 
is  to  put  on  fat  rather  than  to  produce  eggs,  though  in  skillful  hands 
Brahmas  are  good  egg  producers.  The  Leghorn,  the  most  popular 
representative  of  the  egg  type,  is  a  small,  active  fowl,  maturing 
quickly,  the  males  especially  becoming  hard-meated  at  a  very  early 
age,  making  the  breed  of  little  value  for  table  purposes.  But  the 
active  temperament  of  the  Leghorn  tends  to  keep  it,  for  a  longer 
period  than  is  usual,  in  the  physical  condition  favorable  to  reproduc- 
tion under  unfavorable  conditions,  and  consequently,  though  the 
possibilities  of  egg  production  may  be  as  great  with  the  Brahma 
as  with  the  Leghorn,  good  laying  is  more  general  among  fowls  of 
the  Leghorn  type  than  among  those  of  the  Brahma  type. 

In  each  of  these  types  a  superficial  character  limits  the  adapt- 
ability and  use  of  the  class.  The  profuse  feathering  of  Asiatic 


72  POULTRY  CULTURE 

fowls,  and  especially  the  feathering  on  the  feet,  makes  them  un- 
suitable for  many  situations.  The  Mediterranean  fowls,  with  their 
large  combs,  are  ill  suited  to  cold  latitudes.  The  general-purpose 
type  of  fowl,  which  is  vastly  more  popular  than  all  others  com- 
bined, was  developed  objectively  as  a  dual-purpose  type  with  ten- 
dencies toward  meat  and  egg  production  well  balanced,  but  also 
subjectively  as  a  type  free  from  eccentric  features,  and  so  adapted 
to  the  widest  range  of  circumstances. 

In  the  kinds  of  poultry  other  than  fowls,  class  distinctions  are 
less  sharply  drawn.  Breeds  and  varieties  are  not  so  numerous,  and 
breed  and  class  types  may  more  nearly  coincide  ;  yet,  as  breeds  and 
varieties  multiply,  the  tendency  to  the  creation  of  classes  similar  to 
the  recognized  general  classes  of  fowls  becomes  apparent. 

All  breeds  and  varieties  in  a  class  are  substantially  alike.  They 
require  the  same  conditions^  and  treatment  and  serve  the  same 
practical  purposes.  Hence  in  all  questions  relating  to  these  points 
only  class  differences  need  be  considered.  If  one  variety  of  a  class 
is  adapted  to  certain  purposes,  or  thrives  under  certain  conditions 
and  treatment,  any  other  variety  of  the  class  may  serve  well  the 
same  purpose  and  will  thrive  under  like  conditions  and  treatment. 
If  individuals  do  not,  the  fault  is  in  the  individuals  or  the  keeper. 

Necessary  differences  in  conditions  and  methods  are  slight.  The 
general-purpose  type  of  fowl  is  adapted  to  the  widest  range  of  con- 
ditions and  requires  least  attention,  but  the  differences  between 
conditions  and  methods  for  this  type  and  the  Asiatic  meat  type,  on 
the  one  hand,  and  the  egg  type,  on  the  other,  seem,  when  stated, 
quite  trivial.  The  Asiatics  do  best  on  sandy  soils  and  in  cool 
climates,  and  require,  to  make  good  development,  more  food  than 
a  good  range  affords  and,  to  keep  in  laying  condition,  closer  and 
more  judicious  attention  than  the  ordinary  poultry  keeper  gives. 
Fowls  of  the  egg-type  class,  particularly  the  males  with  large  combs 
and  crests,  need-  special  protection  from  cold  and  dampness ;  but 
this  class  requires  less  attention  to  feeding  than  any  other.  In  a 
comparison  of  classes  the  class  characteristics  are  in  a  sense  equal- 
ized, but  this  does  not  enter  into  the  question  as  considered  in  any 
particular  undertaking.  What  each  poultry  keeper  has  to  consider 
is  that,  if  he  selects  a  breed  requiring  special  attention,  his  buildings, 
yards,  fences,  appliances,  and  methods  must  be  adapted  to  that 


METHODS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  73 

breed.  He  should  consider  carefully  in  advance  whether  this  is 
worth  while,  or  whether  it  would  be  better  to  choose  one  not 
requiring  unusual  care.  In  some  cases  it  pays  to  give  the  extra 
care  ;  in  others  it  does  not.  In  a  combination  of  fancy  and  utility 
poultry  keeping  with  the  same  pure  breed,  it  is  also  necessary 
to  consider  whether  the  conditions  and  methods  established  with 
reference  to  one  object  will  also  serve  for  the  other.  They  may 
or  they  may  not ;  and  if  they  do  not,  it  is  usually  better  to  develop 
only  the  line  that  they  suit.  As  a  rule,  economies  of  space  or  labor 
which  are  profitable  in  market  poultry  growing  have  a  detrimental 
effect  on  type,  while  the  special  care  and  attention  which  may 
profitably  be  given  to  high-class  birds  produced  for  exhibition  or 
stock  purposes  do  not  pay  when  applied  to  the  production  of 
poultry  and  eggs  for  the  table. 


CHAPTER  VI 

PROBLEMS  OF  LOCATION 

Phases  of  the  question  of  location.  In  discussing  the  general 
question  of  location  we  consider  the  two  following  subjects  : 

1 .  Matters  which  directly  affect  production,  —  local  climatic  fea- 
tures, exposures,  drainage,  soils.    Such  things  are  of  varying  values 
in  the  problem  of  location  as  presented  to  different  individuals  in 
the  same  community. 

2.  Matters  which,  while  not  so  intimately  affecting  production, 
influence  and  ultimately  determine  its  volume,  —  general  climatic 
conditions,  markets,  transportation  facilities,  and  adaptation  of  poul- 
try keeping  to  other  interests.    Such  things  are,  on  the  whole,  fac- 
tors of  like  value  in  the  same  community.    These  aspects  of  the 
question  cannot  be  wholly  separated,  even  for  purpose  of  discussion, 
but  the  reader  should  note  that,  broadly  speaking,  matters  of  the 
first  class  are  mostly  within  control  of  the  poultryman,  while  mat- 
ters of  the  second  class  are  mostly  beyond  his  control. 

Most  of  those  interested  in  poultry  have  to  adapt  poultry  keeping 
to  a  location  and  to  conditions  determined  without  reference  to  it. 
Only  a  small  proportion  of  those  engaging  in  this  line  try  to  locate 
themselves  with  a  view  to  securing  every  advantage  that  location  can 
give.  From  either  point  of  view  the  facts  and  principles  to  be  con- 
sidered are  the  same.  The  difference  is  in  the  application.  One 
who  is  already  located  must  adapt  poultry  keeping  to  his  location. 
One  who  can  choose  his  location  may  decide  first  what  lines  of 
poultry  keeping  to  follow,  and  locate  accordingly.  In  practice, 
very  few  persons  choose  their  location  with  reference  to  poultry 
keeping,  even  if  able  to  do  so.  They  usually  locate  in  the  section 
or  place  that  they  prefer  to  live  in,  and  adapt  their  poultry  keeping 
to  circumstances. 

Climate.  General  climatic  conditions  are  of  less  importance  in 
poultry  culture  than  is  commonly  supposed.  Wherever  man  can 

74 


PROBLEMS  OF  LOCATION  75 

live  and  sustain  himself,  poultry  can  be  kept  and,  if  the  scale  of 
operations  is  properly  adjusted,  can  be  kept  profitably.  It  is 
sometimes  supposed,  and  occasionally  stated  as  the  result  of  an 
individual  experience,  that  poultry  cannot  be  kept  in  certain  locali- 
ties or  under  certain  conditions,  —  as  high  altitudes,  proximity  to 
salt  water,  etc.  In  most  cases  these  views  are  erroneous.  Usually 
they  are  based  upon  instances  where  failure  was  due  to  causes  not 
peculiar  to  the  locality.  Adaptability  to  a  wide  range  of  climatic 
and  other  conditions  is,  as  has  been  stated,  one  of  the  most  valu- 
able characteristics  of  poultry,  but  individual  birds  are  not  always 
affected  alike  by  radical  changes  of  environment,  nor  is  the  same 
individual  always  equally  able  to  adapt  itself  to  all  changes.  The 
process  of  acclimatization  requires  time.  An  individual,  or  a  stock 
generally,  may  be  so  unfavorably  affected  by  a  change  that  it  is  ad- 
visable to  discard  it  and  try  other  stock,  but,  as  a  rule,  by  judicious 
care  and  breeding  a  stock  may*  be  established  anywhere  within  a 
few  years. 

Nor  are  there  such  differences  in  results  from  poultry  under 
different  climatic  conditions  as  might  be  supposed,  because,  on  the 
whole,  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  due  to  such  conditions  are 
equalized  in  a  year's  work.  Thus  the  long,  rigorous  winters  of  north 
temperate  regions  are  offset  by  the  long,  hot  summers  of  the  South, 
and  the  undesirable  features  of  each,  though  opposite  in  nature, 
may  have  the  same  effects  on  financial  results.1 

1  Theoretically,  there  should  be  an  intermediate  belt  in  which  conditions 
approached  the  ideal.  If  all  other  conditions  could  be  made  uniform  for  purposes 
of  observation,  it  might  be  possible  to  make  a  survey  that  would  locate  such  a  belt ; 
but  no  such  uniformity  can  be  obtained.  The  adaptability  of  poultry  to  climate 
alone  presents  an  insuperable  obstacle  to  exact  computations  of  the  effects  of  cli- 
mate. The  birds  could  not  be  kept  standardized  to  one  climate  while  living  in  an- 
other. The  general  tendency  is  for  birds  of  the  same  breeding  to  give  like  results 
within  a  wide  range  of  climatic  conditions,  if  the  food  and  care  are  appropriate.  In 
milder  climates  cheaper  buildings  may  be  used,  and  the  labor  of  caring  for  the 
poultry  in  winter  is  reduced ;  but  in  general,  production  is  better  where  outdoor 
occupations  are  restricted  in  winter  and  the  poultry  keeper  is  compelled  to  give 
his  birds  careful  attention  to  get  any  profit,  than  where  many  outdoor  occupations 
can  be  carried  on  all  winter  and  the  birds  may  be  given  less  care  without  hardship  to 
them.  Though  the  season  of  winter  egg  production  begins  earlier  in  the  South, 
production  during  the  period  of  high  prices  does  not  seem  to  be  enough  greater 
than  in  the  North  to  give  southern  poultry  keepers  generally  larger  receipts  for 
the  winter  than  are  obtained  in  other  sections. 


76  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Special  features.  Local  climatic  conditions  affecting  poultry 
depend,  as  a  rule,  upon  the  character  or  formation  of  the  land, 
features  of  the  landscape,  prevailing  winds,  etc.  Their  relations  to 
poultry  keeping  are  presented  in  connection  with  the  topics  of  soil, 
sunlight,  and  ventilation.  It  has  been  stated  that  these  conditions 
are  under  the  control  of  the  poultryman.  This  is  not  true  in  the 
sense  that  he  can  alter  them,  though  sometimes  he  may  ;  but  when 
he  cannot  change  he  can  usually  avoid  them,  for  in  most  cases  an 
unfavorable  local  condition  affects  only  a  small  area,  and  is  escaped 
when  buildings  for  poultry  are  placed  on  suitable  sites. 

Soils  and  drainage.  That  a  light,  well-drained  soil,  of  little  value 
for  the  production  of  vegetable  crops,  is  best  suited  for  poultry  was 
long  a  maxim  among  poultry  keepers.  Of  late  years  that  view  has 
been  greatly  modified.  Such  a  soil  has  advantages.  That  it  is  the 
best  soil  for  exclusive  poultry^  keeping  by  intensive  methods  can- 
not be  denied.  Such  land  can  be  "easily  and  continuously  stocked 
with  poultry  longer  than  any  other ;  but  there  is  a  limit  to  the 
capacity  of  any  soil  to  convey  excrement  and  disease  germs  so  far 
below  the  surface  that  they  will  be  harmless,  and  with  the  passing 
of  intensive  methods,  and  the  increasing  tendency  to  either  stock 
land  lightly  or  rotate  poultry  on  it,  the  objections  to  heavy  soils 
become  of  less  importance.  The  special  advantages  of  light  soils 
will  always  be  admitted,  but  such  land  is  no  longer  regarded  as 
the  prime  requisite,  while  the  fact  that  under  some  conditions  it 
has  decided  disadvantages  is  more  generally  recognized. 

Clay  soils.  Clay  soils  are  least  suited  to  poultry,  but  if  surface 
drainage  is  good,  overstocking  avoided,  and  the  land  frequently 
broken  up  for  tillage,  the  character  of  the  soil  does  not  present 
a  serious  obstacle  to  poultry  keeping. 

It  is  desirable  that  land  on  which  permanent  buildings  are 
placed  should  be  of  such  character  or  conformation  that  water 
will  not  stand  near  them- and  that  the  poultry  will  always  have  the 
use  of  an  area  of  approximately  dry  land.  With  this  insurance 
against  protracted  exposure  on  cold,  damp  land,  it  will  be  found 
that  poultry  on  a  range  which  affords  varied  soil  conditions  are 
more  thrifty  and  make  better  development  than  those  restricted 
to  light,  well-drained  soils.  This  is  especially  noticeable  in  hot, 
dry  seasons. 


PROBLEMS  OF  LOCATION  77 

Sunlight.  So  important  is  this  element  in  poultry  keeping  that 
it  is  usual  in  all  northerly  latitudes  to  face  the  buildings  in  a  south- 
erly direction  and,  wherever  possible,  to  place  them  on  a  slope  with 
southerly  exposure.  Such  disposition  of  buildings  is  a  distinct  ad- 
vantage during  the  winter  months,  when  conditions  are  most  try- 
ing, but  is  not  so  essential  that  all  other  considerations  should  be 
subordinate.  Lack  of  such  land  is  no  bar  to  operations  with  poultry. 
Even  a  northerly  slope,  rising  from  a  building  facing  south,  is  less 
objectionable  in  practice  than  it  seems  in  theory.  If  such  a  slope 
is  not  too  abrupt,  and  is  free  from  elevations,  growths,  or  structures 
which  would  prevent  the  sunshine  from  reaching  the  buildings,  as 
good  results  may  be  obtained  on  it  as  anywhere.  In  fact,  while 
snow  is  on  the  ground  and  the  birds  confined  to  the  house,  the  lay 
of  the  land  makes  little  difference.  A  southerly  slope  is  available 
earlier  in  the  spring  and  later  in  the  fall,  and,  when  bare  in  the 
winter,  is  comfortable  and  attractive  when  the  opposite  slope  is  the 
reverse  and  birds  avoid  it.  As  a  rule,  situations  having  the  best  sun 
exposure  in  winter  are  too  much  exposed  to  the  sun  in  summer, 
and  unless  the  heat  at  that  season  is  tempered  for  the  fowls  by 
shade,  or  by  yards  to  the  north  of  the  house,  the  net  advantage 
of  a  sunny  situation  may  be  slight. 

Ventilation.  Circulation  of  air  is  also  an  important  matter  and 
must  be  considered  with  reference  to  all  seasons  and  to  extreme 
conditions.  A  situation  which  in  winter  is  well  sheltered  and  nota- 
bly comfortable  may  become  intolerable  in  summer,  when  the  heat 
of  the  sun  is  intense  and  the  movement  of  air  obstructed  by  foliage 
both  day  and  night.  To  this  condition  in  small  open  spaces  in  the 
woods  is  due  the  generally  unsatisfactory  results  of  efforts  to  keep 
poultry  in  parts  of  wooded  tracts  not  adjacent  to  open  areas  of  con- 
siderable extent.  In  such  places,  and  in  depressions  between  ridges, 
atmospheric  conditions  are  very  often  unsuited  to  poultry.  As  be- 
tween such  conditions  and  exposure  to  strong  winds,  the  latter  is 
less  objectionable,  for  where  circulation  of  air  is  naturally  obstructed, 
no  remedy  may  be  possible  ;  but  it  is  always  possible  to  provide, 
in  wind-swept  situations,  houses  of  wind-proof  construction  and 
such  additional  windbreaks  or  shelters  as  the  fowls  may  require. 

Markets.  Every  city  and  town  furnishes  a  market  for  poultry 
products.  A  town  or  small  city  in  an  agricultural  district  is  likely 


78  POULTRY  CULTURE 

to  be  fully  supplied  from  farms  in  its  vicinity,  at  prices  which  offer 
no  inducement  for  the  extension  of  poultry  growing  in  that  vicinity 
beyond  what  the  ordinary  small  farm  flocks  supply.  But  if  poultry 
producers  in  such  a  district  have  easy  access  to  the  markets  of  a 
large  city,  the  local  price  rises  to  the  city  price  minus  cost  of  trans- 
portation and  distribution.  In  times  of  scarcity  it  may  more  nearly 
approach  prices  in  the  larger  market,  because  of  the  tendency  of 
shippers  to  that  market  to  keep  their  goods  moving  in  the  usual 
channels  and  not  to  interrupt  regular  trade  connections  for  tempo- 
rary advantage.  The  large  city  furnishes  an  almost  constant  outlet 
for  all  supplies  that  reach  it,  for  every  large  city  is  a  distributing 
as  well  as  a  receiving  center.  The  large  cities  of  the  Central  West 
store  their  surplus  receipts  or  ship  them  to  the  large  eastern  cities, 
and  these  in  their  turn  store  them  or  distribute  to  cities  of  lesser 
size  in  the  eastern  states,  where  a  large  proportion  of  the  population 
is  engaged  in  other  than  agricultural  pursuits.  The  volume  of  prod- 
uce shipped  from  the  region  between  the  Mississippi  River  and 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  considerable  though  it  is,  comprises  but  a 
minor  part  of  the  total  product  of  that  region.  Taking  the  country 
as  a  whole,  the  poultry-trade  organization  is  so  efficient  that  the 
question  of  a  market  rarely  calls  for  special  consideration,  further 
than  that,  wherever  he  may  be  located,  the  poultry  keeper  should 
fully  inform  himself  as  to  available  market  advantages. 

Transportation.  The  hauling  of  supplies  and  produce  between 
the  plant  and  the  railway  shipping  point  is  the  phase  of  transpor- 
tation to  which  those  keeping  large  stocks  of  poultry  should  give 
special  attention.  The  difference  between  the  cost  of  a  short  haul 
and  that  of  a  long  haul  often  makes  the  difference  between  a  living 
profit  and  a  profit  so  small  that  the  enterprise  must  be  abandoned. 
A  plant  selling  fancy  poultry  and  eggs,  or  selling  table  poultry  and 
eggs  direct  to  consumers,  or  one  that  buys  large  quantities  of  sup- 
plies, cannot  afford  to  make  long  hauls  locally.  One  producing 
most  of  its  supplies,  and  making  deliveries  of  produce  only  once 
or  twice  a  week,  may  not  be  seriously  handicapped  by  a  haul  of 
five  or  six  miles.  When  hauls  are  not  too  frequent,  the  cost  may 
be  offset  by  some  other  advantage,  as  cheaper  land.  But  if  there 
is  much  hauling  to  be  done,  it  is  a  mistake  to  develop  a  large 
poultry  plant  on  a  site  not  convenient  to  railway  connections. 


CHAPTER  VII 
SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING 

Definitions.  Method  and  system  are  not  always  clearly  differen- 
tiated, and  the  terms  are  often  used  as  synonymous.  There  are, 
however,  many  cases  in  which  the  difference  is  apparent.  Method 
usually  applies  to  processes,  system  to  series  of  processes  or  to 
comprehensive  plans,  including  a  variety  of  more  or  less  related 
processes.1 

General  methods.  In  poultry  keeping  methods  are  described  as 
extensive  (giving  the  birds  as  much  room  as  they  can  use  to  their 
own  advantage  or  to  the  saving  of  labor  for  the  poultryman)  or 
intensive  (placing  on  a  given  area  of  land  a  much  larger  number 
of  birds  than  the  land  can  support,  even  for  a  very  brief  period, 
with  proportionate  increase  of  labor  and  expense  for  their  main- 
tenance). The  common  tendency  in  practice  is  to  go  to  one  or 
the  other  extreme.  The  practice  best  adapted  to  any  particular 
place  !and  conditions  is  usually  some  combination  of  extensive  and 
intensive  methods. 

Essence  of  system.  A  system  of  poultry  keeping  is  a  compre- 
hensive plan  for  adapting  conditions  and  methods  to  the  manage- 
ment of  large  numbers  of  poultry.  In  the  development  of  systems 
of  poultry  keeping,  conditions  and  appliances  are  of  more  impor- 
tance than  processes.  The  object  of  system  is  to  simplify  methods 
and  reduce  labor,  while  maintaining  conditions  favorable  to  the 

1  The  way  of  killing  a  fowl  is  a  method.  The  way  of  feeding  a  single  lot  of 
poultry  for  any  particular  purpose  is  a  method.  Several  related  methods  of 
feeding  poultry  for  different  purposes  may  constitute  a  system  of  feeding.  The 
housing  of  a  single  lot  of  poultry  supplies  a  condition.  The  house  is  an  appliance, 
a  part  of  the  permanent  equipment  of  the  poultry  keeper.  "  Method  of  housing  " 
would  mean  merely  the  act  of  putting  the  poultry  into  the  house.  The  handling 
of  a  single  flock  of  poultry,  though  systematic,  cannot  as  a  rule  be  said  to  consti- 
tute a  system.  In  occasional  cases  a  poultry  keeper  may  carefully  work  out  a 
routine  of  operations  with  a  single  flock  which  might  be  called  a  system,  but  in 
general  the  managing  of  single  flocks  is  merely  a  combination  of  methods  having 
no  special  logical  relation  to  each  other. 

79 


8o 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


stock.  A  system  which  does  not  secure  these  results  in  any  case 
is  not  adapted  to  that  case.  To  be  generally  serviceable,  a  system 
must  be  adapted  to  continuous  poultry  keeping  under  ordinary 
conditions.  There  are  two  typical  systems  of  poultry  keeping,— 
extensive  and  intensive,  —  developed  respectively  from  extensive 
and  intensive  methods  of  handling  single  flocks.1 

Ordinary  farm  poultry  keeping  is  theoretically  by  the  extensive 
method.  On  most  farms  each  kind  of  poultry  is  handled  as  one 
flock,  though  when  the  flock  is  large,  several  houses  may  be  required 
by  birds  ranging  over  the  same  area.  But  when  more  birds  are  kept 
in  one  flock  than  can  procure,  in  the  area  over  which  they  range, 
the  foods  that  they  should  procure  by  foraging,  the  method  actually 


FIG.  79.  Beginnings  of  an  extensive  system  on  the  farm  of  Samuel  Bates, 
West  Norwell,  Massachusetts 

becomes  intensive.  It  is  not  possible  to  indefinitely  increase  the 
size  of  a  flock  and  at  the  same  time  to  maintain  conditions  favor- 
able to  the  birds  and  to  economy  of  labor. 

Extensive  systems.  By  multiplying  the  number  of  flocks  kept 
by  extensive  methods  extensive  systems  are  developed.  The  proper 
development  of  such  a  system  requires  that  the  houses  be  placed 

1  In  this  connection  it  is  appropriate  to  state  the  facts  in  regard  to  the 
numerous  so-called  systems  of  keeping  poultry,  or  of  determining  facts  of  value 
to  the  poultry  keeper.  The  usual  claims  for  a  "  system  "  are  that  it  is  based  upon  a 
discovery  of  the  person  exploiting  it,  and  that  by  the  system  the  results  that  poultry 
keepers  desire  are  assured.  The  system  is  offered  for  sale,  and  the  description  of 
it  represents  it  as  something  to  be  procured  only  from  its  originator.  The  author, 
in  more  than  twenty  years'  intimate  knowledge  of  poultry  culture,  has  not  found  a 
single  instance  where  what  was  of  value  in  such  a  "  system  "  was  not  a  matter  of 
common  knowledge  among  well-informed  poultrymen.  In  all  these  systems  "  what 
is  true  is  not  new,  and  what  is  new  is  not  true." 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING 


8l 


at  such  (minimum)  distance  apart,  and  the  number  of  birds  in  each 
be  so  limited,  that  the  area  serving  as  a  range  for  them  will  provide 
a  good  foraging  ground.  The  flock  is  divided  into  colonies.  Hence 


FIG.  80.  Extensive  system  at  the  Provincial  Poultry  Breeding  Station, 
Edmonton,  Alberta.   Colony  houses  with  large  temporary  yards.   (Photo- 
graph from  the  station) 

the  name  "  colony  system,"  applied  especially  to  the  following  most 
notable  systematic  development  of  extensive  methods. 

The  Rhode  Island  colony  system.   The  development  of  a  colony 
system  of  housing  poultry,  with  appropriate  methods  of  management, 


FIG.  81.  Colony  houses  without  yards  at  the  Wisconsin  Agricultural  College 
(Photograph  from  the  college) 

seems  so  logical  and  natural  that  it  might  reasonably  be  supposed 
that,  as  farmers  all  over  the  country  increased  their  stocks  of  poultry, 
this  system  would  be  generally  adopted.  On  the  contrary,  in  all  but 


82 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


one  locality,  the  usual  practice  was  to  increase  production  only  as 
long  as  the  stock  kept  could  be  handled  in  one  flock. 

Some  one  in  the  vicinity  of  Little  Compton,  Rhode  Island, 
at  an  early  stage  of  the  awakening  of  interest  in  poultry  keeping, 

saw  the  advantage  of 
retaining  the  style  of 
small  house  in  use  and 
of  distributing  small 
flocks  over  the  land, 
and  adopted  that  sys- 
tem. Others  followed 
his  example.  The 
system  was  soon  in 
general  use  in  a  lim- 
ited area  in  that  part  of 
Rhode  Island  and  the 


FIG.  82.  Large  colonies  on  the  farm  of  A.  M.  Shaw, 
Groton,  N.Y.     (Photograph  by  H.  J.  Blanchard) 


adjoining  part  of  Massachusetts,  poultry  keeping  became  the  most 
important  interest  of  the  district,  and  the  district  became  one  of  the 
largest  poultry-producing  communities  in  the  world.  While  occasion- 
ally individuals  failed  or,  because  of  disease  in  the  flocks,  were  obliged 
to  discontinue  operations  for  a  period,  on  the  whole  poultry  ventures 
flourished  and  grew  to  large  proportions,  were  as  permanent  as  other 
branches  of  agriculture,  and  were  often  carried  on  generation  after 


FIG.  83.  Colony  system  on  a  Pennsylvania  farm 

generation  by  the  same  families  on  the  same  farms.  The  Rhode 
Island  Red,  a  breed  especially  adapted  to  local  conditions  and 
methods,  was  developed  and  long  remained  peculiar  to  that  locality. 
The  development  of  the  colony  system  in  this  section  began 
about  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  but  attracted  little  attention 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING 


outside  the  district  un- 
til recent  years.1  This 
neglect  of  so  impor- 
tant a  development 
was  due  to  the  gen- 
eral faith  in  intensive 
methods  and  to  the 
prevailing  idea  that 
poultry  culture  on  an 
extensive  scale  could 
only  be  carried  on  suc- 
cessfully when  artifi- 


FIG.  84.  Intensive  back-yard  plant.    (Photograph 
from  E.  A.  Day,  Farmington,  Minnesota) 


cial  methods  of  incubating  and  brooding  were  used,  and  the  sup- 
posed correct  principles  of  housing,  feeding,  etc.  (which  made  the 


FIG.  85.  Intensive  system  on  farm  in  central  Massachusetts.    Shelters  with  small 
attached  runs.    Note  similarity  between  the  unit  in  this  system  and  the  house 

and  run  in  Fig.  84 

ventilation  of  a  house  an  engineering  feat  and  the  feeding  of  a  few 
fowls  a  chemical  problem)  were  carefully  observed.    Not  until  the 

1  I  first  visited  this  section  and  published  an  account  of  the  system  in  1901. 
No  extended  account  of  it  had  previously  been  published,  and  the  occasional  items 
regarding  it  appearing  in  one  of  the  poultry  papers  were  hardly  noticed.  Even  to 
this  day  the  greater  part  of  the  poultry  press  is  not  interested  in  these  poultry 
keepers,  who,  with  few  exceptions,  neither  buy  nor  sell  anything  through  advertis- 
ing. I  would  not  state  positively  from  memory,  and  verification  would  be  difficult, 
but  to  the  best  of  my  recollection  it  was  not  until  five  or  six  years  later  than  the  pub- 
lication of  my  account  that  investigators  of  poultry  matters  began  to  visit  this  sec- 
tion, and  these  were  mostly  engaged  in  educational  work. 


84 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


limitations  of  intensive  systems  began  to  be  widely  recognized  was 
any  general  interest  shown  in  the  Rhode  Island  colony  system. 
Nowhere  else  are  extensive  methods  applied  so  consistently  and  on 

so  large  a  scale  as  in 
the  Little  Compton 
district.  Interest  in  the 
system  elsewhere  takes 
the  direction  mainly  of 
seeking  to  apply  fea- 
tures of  the  system  as 
practiced  here  in  modi- 
fication of  the  intensive 
system.  Points  relat- 

FIG.  86.  View  on  an  intensive  plant  (no  system)         ing  to  this  will  be  COn- 

sidered  in  their  place. 

Ordinary  town  poultry  keeping  is  by  the  intensive  method.1 
Few  town  people  who  keep  fowls  are  willing  to  give  up  to  them  as 
much  land  as  the  flock  needs  for  range,  even  if  they  have  the  land. 
The  townsman  especially  interested  in  poultry  almost  invariably 
wants  to  keep  all  the  poultry  that  his  land  will  carry  by  any  known 


FIG.  87.  An  intensive  plant  (good  system).   (Photograph  from  E.  T.  Brown, 
London,  England) 

method.    The  average  flock  contains  from  twelve  to  fifteen  or 
eighteen  hens,  is  housed  in  a  building  having  a  floor  surface  of 

1  This  book  does  not  treat  at  all  the  ultraintensive  methods  of  the  mushroom 
"  systems,"  widely  exploited  for  a  few  years  but  now  dying  out.  The  actual  de- 
velopments of  such  systems  are  insignificant. 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  85 

from  80  to  1 20  square  feet,  and  is  given  a  yard  of  only  two  or 
three  times  the  area  of  the  house  floor.  Under  such  conditions 
poultry  can  be  kept  healthy  and  made  productive  only  by  the  most 
careful  management,  including  regular  provision  for  exercise  and 
the  variety  of  vegetable  and  animal  foods  that  they  get  when 
foraging  on  a  good  range.  If  carefully  managed,  small  flocks  so 
kept  will  usually  show  a  better  profit  per  hen  and  better  returns 
for  the  area  of  ground  that  they  occupy  than  flocks  kept  on  range. 
Larger  flocks  under  the  same  conditions  do  not,  as  a  rule,  give 
returns  proportionate  to  those  from  the  small  flocks.  Hence  it  was 
natural  for  the  town  poultry  keeper,  instead  of  adding  to  the  original 


FIG.  88.  Typical  breeding-stock  house  (intensive  plan).    The  yards  here  are 
only  50  feet  long,  though  available  land  is  practically  unlimited 

flock  when  increasing  his  stock,  to  multiply  his  flocks,  just  as  the 
Rhode  Island  farmer  did,  and  thus  to  develop  the  intensive  system. 
Intensive  systems.  When  the  small  flock  in  close  quarters  is 
made  the  unit,  and  the  conditions  duplicated  indefinitely,  an  inten- 
sive system  is  developed.  By  such  a  system  the  apparent  poultry 
capacity  of  any  given  area  is  very  large.  Four  or  five  hundred  hens 
to  the  acre  the  advocate  of  intensive  methods  did  not  consider 
crowding,  and  some  systems  were  calculated  for  double  those 
numbers.  The  difference  between  a  system  providing  for  four  or 
five  hundred  hens  to  the  acre  and  one  providing  for  eight  hundred 
or  a  thousand  was  principally  in  the  allowance  of  yard  room.  The 
smaller  numbers  might  be  given  yards  large  enough  for  a  part  of 
the  yard  to  keep  in  grass  under  favorable  conditions ;  the  larger 


86  POULTRY  CULTURE 

numbers  were  given  small,  bare  yards.  Houses  were  of  the  same 
style  and  the  sections  generally  of  the  same  dimensions,  though  to 
provide  for  large  numbers  the  space  requirements  per  bird  might 
be  figured  on  a  smaller  allowance  and  the  estimated  capacity  of 
each  section  thus  increased. 

Seeing  no  occasion  for  separating  houses,  and  a  distinct  advan- 
tage in  joining  them,  intensive  poultry  keepers  developed  first 
houses  several  times  as  long  as  those  used  for  a  single  flock,  and 
finally  houses  ten,  twenty,  and  even  fifty  times  as  long,  making 


FIG.  89.  View  of  part  of  poultry  plant  at  Pennsylvania  State  College,  where 
both  systems  are  in  use 

the  common  lengths  from  100  to  over  200  feet,  and  in  extreme 
cases  500  and  (approximately)  600  feet. 

The  intensive  system  has  been  in  general  use  for  about  fifty 
or  sixty  years,  but  has  never  been  long  successful  when  the 
plant  was  larger  than  the  owner  could  care  for  personally,  and 
not  often  permanent  when  on  such  a  scale  that  all  of  one  man's 
time  was  required.1  It  is  still  widely  used,  though  attempts  to  es- 
tablish large  plants  of  that  type  are  less  numerous  than  formerly. 
It  is  likely  to  be  used  for  a  long  time,  perhaps  always,  in  many 
instances  where  it  should  be  at  least  considerably  modified,  simply 
because  of  the  common  human  tendency  to  undertake  more  than 
resources  warrant. 

1  The  writer  has  not  known  more  than  two  or  three  poultrymen  who  have 
made  a  living  on  an  intensive  plant  who  would  advise  others  to  use  the  system 
on  a  large  scale,  or  would  continue  to  use  it  themselves  if  they  could  afford  the 
cost  and  loss  of  making  a  change. 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  87 

Comparison  of  extensive  and  intensive  systems.  The  object  of 
comparison  of  typical  extensive  and  intensive  methods  and  systems 
is  to  determine  the  values  and  applications  of  each.  As  indicated 


FIG.  90.  Colony  houses  placed  end  to  the  road,  with  yards  running  from  road 
(Photograph  from  E.  T.  Brown,  London,  England) 

in  the  statement  of  the  present  attitude  of  poultrymen  toward  the 
colony  system,  the  best  working  system  will  in  most  cases  combine 
extensive  and  intensive  methods.  These  methods,  while  different 


FIG.  91.  A  Massachusetts  farmer's  adaptation  of  idea  shown  in  Fig.  90 
Houses  (with  yards)  on  both  sides  of  the  road 

in  many  points,  are  not  mutually  exclusive,  but  present  the  ex- 
tremes, between  which  there  may  be  as  many  grades  of  the  two 
in  combination  as  there  are  persons  using  them. 

The  advantages  of  the  extensive  or  colony  system  are: 

i.  Conditions  most  favorable  to  poultry  at  all  stages  of  growth. 


88  POULTRY  CULTURE 

2.  Low  cost  of  equipment;    the  house  cost  per  bird  may  be 
lower  for  the  same  number  of  birds  in  houses  of  equal  size.    With 
good  range  the  birds  use  the  house  less,  when  there  is  no  snow  on 
the  ground,  and  a  larger  number  of  birds  may  be  kept  in  colony 
houses  than  in  the  sections  of  the  same  floor  area  in  a  continuous 
sectional  house  with  small  yards. 

3.  Economy  of   labor   (when   snow   does   not  lie  long  on  the 
ground)  and  larger  utilization  of  unskilled  labor.   Birds  kept  under 
natural  conditions  do  not  require  the  constant  dieting  and  nursing 


FIG.  92.  Pittsfield  Poultry  Farm,  Pittsfield,  Maine,  where  intensive  and  extensive 

systems  are  combined,  large  yards  for  adult  stock  and  young  stock  grown  in 

orchards  on  the  colony  system 

too  often  necessary  on  intensive  plants,  and  many  things  to  which 
the  intensive  poultry  keeper  must  give  his  constant  personal 
attention  may  safely  be  left  to  unskilled  help.  There  is  also  less 
need  of  scrupulous  cleanliness. 

4.  Economy  of  food  ;  the  birds  pick  a  large  part  of  their  living. 

5.  Improvement  of  land,  and   sometimes  double   cropping  of 
land,  especially  with  young  poultry. 

6.  Stability  of  value  of  equipment ;  when  small,  movable  houses 
are  used,  they  are  salable  at  their  full  value  at  any  time. 

The  disadvantages  of  the  extensive  or  colony  system  are : 

1.  Added  labor  in  bad  weather,  particularly  when  snow  keeps 
the  birds  in  the  houses. 

2.  Unfavorable  conditions  for  the  birds  when  long  confined  to 
houses  designed  only  for  roosting  and  laying  quarters. 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  89 

3.  Difficulty  of  controlling  disease  when  the  flocks  mingle. 

In  a  summary  of  advantages  and  disadvantages  it  appears  that 
the  colony  system  is  a  system  best  adapted  to  mild  climates,  where 
winters  are  short ;  and  that  for  its  extensive  development  a  farm 
of  considerable  acreage  is  required. 

The  advantages  of  an  intensive  system  are : 

1 .  More  favorable  conditions  for  the  fowls  in  winter  weather  or 
extremely  rough  weather  at  any  season. 

2.  Comfort  and  convenience  of  poultry  keeper  in  bad  weather. 


FIG.  93.  The  long  houses  are  200  feet  long  by  20  feet  wide.   The  house  at  the  ex- 
treme right  has  small  compartments  for  special  matings.    (Continuing  Fig.  92) 
(Photograph  from  Pittsfield  Poultry  Farm) 

3.  Admits  of  keeping  a  large  stock  of  adult  birds  (and  young 
ducks)  on  small  areas. 

The  disadvantages  of  an  intensive  system  are : 

1 .  Unfavorable  conditions  for  adult  stock  in  warm  weather  and 
unsuitable  conditions  for  the  breeding  birds  and  young  stock.     5 

2.  Added  cost  of  labor  at  all  seasons  when  the  birds  should 
be  on  range. 

3.  Added  cost  of  food  at  all  seasons  when  the  birds  should  be 
on  range. 

4.  Increased  cost  of  equipment,  buildings  costing,  on  the  whole, 
considerably  more  than  for  colonized  flocks,  and  the  cost  of  fences 
being  a  comparatively  large  item. 

5 .  Contamination  of  land  and  expense  of  keeping  small  perma- 
nent yards  in  good  sanitary  condition. 


90  POULTRY  CULTURE 

6.  Instability  of  value  of  buildings  ;  when  an  intensive  plant 
is  discontinued,  the  buildings  on  it  can  rarely  be  sold  for  more 
than  a  very  small  fraction  of  what  they  originally  cost.1 


FIG.  94.    The  colony  system  in  use  at  the  Shellbanks  Farm  of  the  Hampton 
Institute,  Hampton,  Virginia 

In  a  summary  of  advantages  and  disadvantages  it  appears  that 
the  intensive  system  is  adapted  to  winter  conditions  and  areas  too 
restricted  to  admit  of  giving  range  to  poultry,  and  that  it  is  defective 


FIG.  95.  Another  view  of  colony  poultry  farming  at  Shellbanks.    (Photographs 
from  Hampton  Institute) 

in  that  it  is  not  suited  to  young  and  breeding  stock.  Continuous  poul- 
try culture  by  intensive  methods  is  practically  impossible.    The  land 

1  Usually  they  have  been  allowed  to  fall  into  decay.  Near  Boston  some  years 
ago  three  long  houses,  costing  $3000  and  used  only  a  short  time,  sold  at  auction 
(to  be  removed)  for  less  than  $100. 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  9! 

becomes  polluted  by  the  excrement  of  the  fowls  and  sometimes  in- 
fected with  disease  germs,  the  stock  deteriorates,  and  the  poultryman 
cannot  stand  the  stress  and  strain  of  working  against  natural  laws. 
Combining  advantages  of  the  two  systems.  While  general 
practice  on  farms,  as  well  as  on  town  lots  and  on  poultry  plants, 
has  tended  too  much  toward  intensive  conditions,  the  marked  and 
almost  immediately  apparent  disadvantage  of  such  conditions  for 
breeding  stock  and  growing  stock  forced  a  measure  of  departure 
from  them,  especially  in  the  care  of  the  growing  stock  to  be  used 
for  laying  and  breeding  purposes.  It  was  usual,  even  when  the 
intensive  plant  was  at  the  height  of  its  popularity,  to  give  breeding 


FIG.  96.  Colony  houses  at  one  side  of  grain  field  at  Iowa  Agricultural  College 
(Photograph  from  the  college) 

stock  more  room  than  the  laying  stock,  either  by  colonizing  or  by 
reducing  the  number  in  the  compartments  allotted  to  them  (thus 
giving  more  room  in  both  house  and  yard),  and  to  give  range  to 
the  young  stock, — although,  too  often,  the  range  was  so  overstocked 
that  the  actual  advantage  of  doing  so  was  very  slight.  Sometimes, 
the  birds  being  nominally  on  range,  too  much  was  assumed  as 
to  the  advantages  which  they  secured  in  being  at  liberty,  and  the 
variety  of  foods  which,  under  suitable  conditions,  the  range  would 
have  furnished  was  not  provided.  In  the  majority  of  cases  the  most 
serious  obstacle  to  the  adoption  of  extensive  methods  was  the  lack 
of  land  and  the  difficulty  of  securing  adjoining  or  convenient  land 
for  the  rearing  of  young  stock. 

Leaving  out  of  consideration  the  cost  of  equipment  and  labor,  if 


92  POULTRY  CULTURE 

breeding  stock  is  given  grass  yards  of  such  size  that  the  birds  do  not 
keep  the  grass  down,  and  the  young  stock  to  be  retained  can  be  grown 
each  year  on  fresh  ground,  without  overcrowding  their  range,  young 
birds  which  are  to  be  marketed  may  be  grown,  and  laying  stock  kept, 
under  intensive  conditions,  without  marked  falling  off  in  results,  for  a 
term  of  years  the  duration  of  which  will  be  determined  by  the  charac- 
ter of  the  soil  and  the  attention  given  to  maintaining  sanitary  con- 
ditions. Whether,  when  cost  of  equipment  and  labor  are  considered, 
it  pays  to  adopt  intensive  methods  for  laying  stock  and  market  poul- 
try is  determined  in  each  case  by  the  circumstances  in  that  case. 


FIG.  97.  Summer  arrangement  of  colony  houses  at  Macdonald  College 
(Photograph  from  the  college) 

In  the  growing  of  soft  roasters,  one  of  the  most  profitable 
branches  of  poultry  culture,  the  methods  used  are  in  some  respects 
so  intensive  that  when  first  published  they  were  received  by  poul- 
trymen  generally  with  incredulity.  But  the  soft-roaster  growers 
in  the  South  Shore  district  (with  a  very  few  exceptions)  do  not 
practice  continuous  poultry  culture.  As  originally  developed,  the 
business l  was  exclusively  the  growing,  under  intensive  conditions, 

1  This  business,  as  developed  in  this  district,  is  a  fine  example  of  an  efficient 
extemporaneous  and  informal  organization  of  producers.  The  farmers  keep  the 
breeding  stock,  selling  eggs  for  hatching  to  the  growers  from  about  midsummer 
until  about  midwinter.  The  price  paid  was  for  many  years  fifty  cents  a  dozen, 
but  of  late  years  sixty  cents  has  been  the  standard  price.  A  large  grower  usually 
requires  the  eggs  of  a  number  of  farm  flocks,  and  contracts  for  them  in  advance. 
As  the  eggs  from  the  farms  having  the  best  reputation  for  furnishing  fertile 


SYSTEMS  OF  POULTRY  KEEPING  93 

of  market  poultry  hatched  from  eggs  purchased  of  farmers  who 
kept  their  stock  under  extensive  conditions.  That  is  still  the  com- 
mon practice,  though  a  few  growers  keep  their  own  breeding  stock. 
Besides,  the  business  is  the  growing  of  "  winter  chickens,"  and  the 
stock  is  off  the  land  during  the  summer  and  early  fall,  thus  admitting 
of  regular  growing  of  crops  that  remove  the  fertilizer  from  the  soil. 
At  Macdonald  College,  Quebec,  the  poultry  department  has 
adopted,  with  very  satisfactory  results,  a  plan  of  using  colony 
houses  in  the  summer  and  drawing  them  together  in  the  winter 
(see  illustrations).  The  houses  are  in  fenced  fields  without  division 


FIG.  98.  Winter  arrangement  of  colony  houses  at  Macdonald  College 
(Photograph  from  the  college) 

fences,  all  houses  in  a  field  being  occupied  by  fowls  of  the  same 
variety.  This  gives  the  hens  good  range  when  they  can  be  out  on 
the  ground,  and  brings  the  houses  together  for  the  season  when,  in 
that  country,  it  would  be  impossible  to  manage  poultry  in  widely 
separated  colonies.  This  plan  is  more  likely  to  be  carried  out  as 

eggs  are  most  in  demand,  the  newcomer  among  the  growers  usually  experiences 
some  difficulty  in  getting  good  eggs.  Many  of  the  growers,  after  getting  out 
what  chickens  they  need  for  their  own  business,  use  their  incubators  to  hatch 
eggs  for  the  farmers.  Thus  during  the  greater  part  of  the  year  the  eggs  from  the 
farm  flocks  are  used  for  hatching  purposes.  The  income  of  the  growers  all  comes 
in  during  a  few  months  in  the  spring  and  early  summer.  A  grower  whose  credit  is 
good  is  "  carried  "  by  his  grain  dealer,  who  perhaps  is  carried,  in  turn,  by  his 
bank,  through  the  season  when  expenses  are  heavy  and  income  nothing.  The 
entire  product  of  the  district  is  marketed  by  a  few  men  who  buy  chickens,  as 
they  become  ready,  from  the  grower,  paying  cash  for  the  live  birds,  dressing 
them,  and  shipping  to  the  Boston  market. 


94  POULTRY  CULTURE 

projected  in  a  region  where  winters  are  long  and  severe  than  where 
the  shorter  winters,  sometimes  with  little  snow,  tempt  the  poultry 
keeper  to  leave  the  houses  in  the  fields  and  thus  save  the  labor 
of  twice  moving  them. 

Temporary  range.  A  common  practice  of  breeders  who  keep 
their  breeding  stock  under  intensive  conditions  is  to  put  all  hens 
in  one  large  flock  at  the  close  of  the  breeding  season,  and  from  that 
time  until  winter  give  them  range  under  conditions  as  nearly  natural 
as  possible.  Often  the  land  used  for  this  purpose  is  rough,  over- 
grown with  weeds  and  brush,  swampy,  etc.,  —  of  such  character 
that  it  is  not  desirable  to  use  it  for  permanent  yards  or  for  any 
purpose  that  necessitates  much  traveling  over  it.  It  is  a  matter  of 
common  observation  that  hens  thus  turned  out  to  pasture  not  only 
store  up  vitality  for  the  following  breeding  season  but  frequently 
lay  well  all  through  the  summer  and  fall. 

Weakest  point  in  intensive  systems.  The  common  obstacle  to 
the  development  of  branches  of  poultry  culture  under  intensive 
conditions  supplied  with  stock  from  flocks  kept  under  extensive 
conditions  is  the  uncertainty  of  the  source  of  supply.  Many  poultry 
keepers  engaged  in  producing  market  eggs  have  tried  to  have  their 
stock  grown  on  farms,  but  usually  with  most  unsatisfactory  results. 


CHAPTER  VIII 
YARDS  AND  FENCES 

The  subjects  of  this  chapter,  usually  treated  as  supplementary  to 
discussions  of  housing,  are  properly  preliminary.  The  relations  of 
poultry  and  the  land  that  it  occupies  is  a  primary  question  in  perma- 
nent poultry  culture  ;  the  question  of  supplied  shelter  is  secondary. 
Many  kinds  of  poultry  require  no  shelter  other  than  that  which 
nature  provides  in  conditions  favorable  to  their  existence.  All 
kinds  of  poultry  thrive  as  well  or  better  in  the  open  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  natural  breeding  and  growing  seasons.  To  a 
much  greater  extent  than  is  generally  appreciated,  the  advantage 
of  human  protection  to  these  birds  is  in  protection  from  natural 
enemies  rather  than  in  protection  from  the  elements. 

The  methods  and  systems  of  poultry  keeping  applicable  in  any 
case  depend  (as  shown  in  the  preceding  chapter)  very  much  upon  the 
amount  of  land  available  and  the  extent  to  which  climatic  conditions 
permit  use  of  the  land.  While  in  order  of  construction  fences  follow 
houses,  the  first  point  to  consider  in  planning  is  the  amount  of  land 
available,  or  to  be  occupied,  and  how  it  may  be  used  to  best  advantage. 
The  type  of  house  or  other  shelter  to  be  used,  as  well  as  methods  of 
management,  will  depend  upon  how  the  land  is  to  be  apportioned. 

A  yard  for  poultry  is  a  necessary  evil.  The  degree  of  the  evil 
varies  inversely  with  the  size  of  the  poultry  yard.  One  man,  who 
appears  frequently  as  a  poultry  lecturer,  is  accustomed  to  say  that 
the  word  "yard  "  should  be  banished  from  the  vocabulary  of  poultry- 
men  and  that  they  should  accustom  themselves  to  consider  poultry 
as  creatures  which  need  pasture.  The  idea  is  an  excellent  one  to 
keep  in  mind,  though  a  great  deal  of  poultry  must  always  be  kept 
in  small  inclosures.  To  economize  cost  of  fencing,  most  yards  for 
poultry  are  made  even  smaller  than  the  limits  of  space  require. 
This  is  false  economy,  due  usually  to  the  fact  that  the  poultry 
keeper  does  not  understand  that  the  height  of  fence  necessary 
depends  on  the  area  of  the  yard,  and  does  not  know  how  to  take 
*  95 


96  POULTRY  CULTURE 

advantage  of  the  possibilities  of  the  common  wire  poultry  fencing. 
The  desire  to  keep  a  number  of  varieties  of  the  same  kind  of 
poultry  also  necessitates  yards  with  fences  so  high  and  substantial 
that  the  different  kinds  cannot  mingle,  when  if  a  single  variety 
were  kept  on  a  farm,  or  in  a  community,  it  would  not  be  so  neces- 
sary to  insure  complete  separation  of  flocks.  A  fence  may  serve 
to  separate  different  flocks,  or  to  keep  poultry  from  places  where 
they  are  not  wanted,  or  to  protect  them.  The  amount  and  kind  of 
fence  used  should  depend  on  the  needs  of  each  case.  Though 
commonly  done,  it  is  absurd  to  construct  a  fence  to  serve  several 
purposes  when  there  is  occasion  only  for  a  fence  that  serves  one, 
or  where  there  is  no  need  to  fence  at  all. 

Necessary  height  of  fence.  The  height  of  fence  required  varies 
directly  according  to  the  kind  of  poultry  kept,  and  inversely  accord- 
ing to  the  area  of  the  yard.  It  is  not  practicable  to  construct  a  fence 
high  enough  to  keep  turkeys  and  some  of  the  lighter  breeds  of 
fowls  in  small,  bare  yards.  The  same  birds  at  liberty  might  rarely 
attempt  to  cross  a  fence  3  or  4  feet  high.  Any  of  the  medium- 
weight1  and  heavy-weight  breeds  of  fowls  may  be  confined  by 
a  fence  of  wire  netting  3  feet  high  if  the  inclosure  is  large  enough 
to  enable  them  to  gratify  in  a  measure,  if  not  fully,  their  natural 
propensity  to  forage.  For  ducks  and  geese  at  any  age,  and  for 
small  chickens,  very  low  fences  will  answer.  Adult  ducks  of  the 
heavier  breeds  will  rarely  go  over  a  fence  18  inches  high.  Young 
ducks  and  goslings  may  be  kept  in  for  some  time  in  inclosures 
surrounded  by  boards  8,  10,  or  12  inches  wide,  set  on  edge  and 
kept  in  place  with  small  stakes  or  pegs  driven  into  the  ground. 
Netting  12  inches  wide  will  answer  the  same  purpose,  but  when 
netting  is  used,  1 8-inch  widths,  which  will  serve  until  the  birds 
are  grown,  are  preferred.  For  fences  to  be  moved  often,  it  is 
advisable  to  use  netting  which,  when  new,  is  a  little  wider  than 

1  It  is  stated  on  good  authority  that  Leghorns  may  be  kept  in  large  yards  with 
3-foot  netting  if  the  stakes  used  are  from  6  to  8  feet  high  and  pointed  at  the  top, 
offering  them  no  inducement  to  fly  over.  The  author  has  kept  Silver  Gray  Dork- 
ings that  could  easily  fly  over  a  6-foot  fence  if  so  inclined,  in  yards  fenced  with 
3-foot  netting  on  low  stakes  and  never  had  them  break  out.  In  Beverly,  Massa- 
chusetts, at  one  time,  a  Mr.  Fassett  had  a  large  flock  of  Leghorns  on  a  vacant 
town  lot  some  rods  from  his  home,  inclosed  in  part  by  an  old  stone  wall  and  in 
part  by  a  low  wire  fence,  and  the  fowls  gave  no  trouble  by  straying  beyond  bounds. 


YARDS  AND  FENCES  97 

required,  because,  with  the  tendency  to  sag  and  the  further  gradual 
reduction  of  the  width  through  repeated  stretching,  the  width  of 
a  strip  of  netting,  after  being  taken  down  and  put  up  again  several 
times,,  may  be  from  3  to  5  or  6  inches  less  than  it  was  when  new. 

Turkeys,  peafowls,  guineas,  and  pheasants  can  be  kept  in  con- 
finement only  by  covering  the  yards.  The  pheasant  is  the  only  one 
of  these  birds  which  may  be  profitably  grown  in  this  way,  and  the 
profit  in  pheasants  in  close  confinement  is  only  obtained  when  they 
are  of  a  quality  that  will  bring  high  prices.  For  protection  from 
foxes  a  fence  should  be  not  less  than  five  feet  high.  Ostriches 
require  as  high  and  as  strong  a  fence  as  cattle. 

Area  of  yard.  The  use  of  low  fences  depends  on  the  size  of  the 
flock,  on  the  character  of  the  soil  and  the  kind  and  condition  of  the 
vegetation  on  it,  and  (to  some  extent)  on  the  kind  of  fowls.  As  a 
rule,  the  lighter  and  more  active  breeds  are  most  destructive.  Occa- 
sionally individuals  or  flocks  are  found  which  differ  from  most  of 
their  kind  in  this  respect.  A  permanent  yard  is  kept  in  good  con- 
dition with  the  minimum  of  labor  and  cost  when  in  sod.  On  aver- 
age soil,  if  grass  is  well  established  before  fowls  are  allowed  on  it, 
in  a  yard  allowing  100  square  feet  per  bird,  sod  may  be  maintained 
in  good  condition  over  the  greater  part  of  the  yard.  It  will  be  worn 
rather  bare  near  the  house,  and  the  grass  may  not  be  kept  down 
in  the  part  of  the  yard  farthest  from  the  house.  On  poorer  soil  it 
may  be  necessary  to  allow  200  square  feet  or  more  per  bird  to  main- 
tain grass.  A  flock  of  from  thirty  to  thirty-five  hens  would  require 
from  5000  to  10,000  square  feet  of  yard  space.  .  When  temporary 
yards  are  used,  they  may  be  smaller,  provided  they  are  changed  often 
enough  to  prevent  the  destruction  of  the  grass.  As  long  as  the  yard 
furnishes  fairly  good  foraging,  and  there  is  nothing  particularly  at- 
tractive just  beyond  bounds,  the  poultry  are  not  likely  to  go  over  the 
fences.  They  are  much  more  likely  to  go  under  or  through  them  if 
the  wire  is  defective  or  does  not  follow  the  ground  closely.  When 
poultry  are  yarded  on  land  occupied  by  a  growing  crop  or  by  small 
fruits,  they  will  rarely  attempt  to  leave  the  yard.  If  the  plot  is  over- 
stocked with  poultry,  they  are  more  likely  to  damage  the  crop  than  to 
go  out  of  bounds.  The  poultry  that  is  run  in  crops  is  usually  young 
stock,  and  the  number  of  any  kind  that  may  be  kept  in  any  given 
space  varies  with  their  age  and  size  ;  no  definite  rule  can  be  given. 


98  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Alternating  yards.  When  poultry  must  be  kept  continuously  on 
the  same  land,  many  poultrymen  make  such  a  division  of  the  land 
available  for  yards  that  while  the  birds  occupy  a  part  (usually  half)  of 
the  allotment  for  each  flock,  grass  or  some  other  crop  is  grown  on  the 
rest,  taking  up  the  impurities  in  the  soil.  When  the  yards  are  of  good 
size,  the  advantage  of  this  may  be  noticeable,  but  when  the  yards  are 
small,  the  disadvantage  of  restricting  the  poultry  to  half  the  space  is 
probably  greater  than  the  value  of  the  green  food  grown  on  the 
land  that  they  are  not  occupying.  In  this,  as  in  many  other  shifts  to 
overcome  the  disadvantages  of  too  intensive  conditions,  the  benefit 
is  not  always  demonstrated  in  a  short  experience.  In  the  long  run 
results  count  against  highly  intensive  methods,  even  when  tempered 
by  such  practices  as  this.  Another  common  practice  in  intensive 
poultry  keeping  is  to  have  the  yards  connecting  directly  with  the 
house  compartments  small,  making  no  effort  to  keep  vegetation  in 
them,  then  have  a  large  grass  yard  adjoining  to  which  any  flock  may 
be  admitted  at  will,  and  alternate  the  flocks  on  this  for  brief  periods. 
One  of  the  most  common  ways  of  arranging  alternating  yards  with 
a  continuous  house  is  to  have  the  yards  both  south  and  north  of 
the  house,  using  the  former  in  winter  and  the  latter  in  summer. 

Fence  material.  Wire.  The  most  common  poultry  fencing  is 
the  hexagonal-  or  octagonal-mesh  woven-wire  netting  known  every- 
where as  poultry  netting.  A  number  of  brands  of  rectangular-mesh 
wire  fencing  for  poultry  have  been  put  on  the  market.  These  have 
the  advantage  of  "following  the  ground  "  without  bulging,  and  it 
is  easier  to  do  a  neat  job  of  fencing  with  them,  but  the  wires,  being 
galvanized  before  weaving,  rust  quickly,  and  few  poultrymen  buy 
fencing  of  this  kind  a  second  time.  The  ordinary  netting,  galva- 
nized after  weaving,  is  cheaper  and  (so  far)  has  proved  more  dur- 
able and  altogether  more  satisfactory  wherever  a  light  fence  will 
answer.  For  heavier  fence  for  protection  for  poultry  the  other 
styles  of  wire  fencing  may  be  used,  and  though  it  has  not  been  the 
practice  to  paint  fences  of  this  kind,  it  would  undoubtedly  pay  to  do 
so.1  Even  a  well-galvanized  fencing  rusts  very  quickly  sometimes, 

1  What  is  said  here  of  the  durability  of  rectangular-mesh  wire  fencing  applies 
to  brands  that  have  been  in  use  up  to  the  time  of  writing  (1911).  The  life  of  these 
varies ;  some  begin  to  rust  almost  immediately ;  some  are  good  for  several  years. 
Any  fence  of  this  style,  with  suitable-sized  mesh,  will  be  more  generally  satisfac- 
tory than  the  other  when  this  fault  of  rusting  is  fully  remedied. 


YARDS  AND  FENCES  99 

when  vines  are  allowed  to  run  on  it,  the  zinc  coating  often  oxidiz- 
ing much  more  rapidly  where  vines  cling  than  along  the  ground 
where  the  grass  binds  it. 

Posts.  Any  light  wooden  post  will  answer  for  poultry  fences. 
When  the  fence  is  for  poultry  only,  posts  may  be  of  small  diam- 
eter, especially  if  of  durable  wood.  Where  many  posts  four  or 
five  inches  in  diameter  are  to  be  set,  it  is  better  to  sharpen 
one  end,  square  the  other  and  trim  to  allow  placing  on  it  a  heavy 
iron  ring  or  cap  (to  prevent  splitting  and  shattering),  and  drive  the 
posts  instead  of  digging  post  holes  and  setting.  When  posts  for 
high  fences  are  driven,  the  best  way  is  to  load  the  prepared  posts 
onto  a  wagon,  leaving  room  forward  for  a  man  to  stand  to  drive  them, 
start  the  holes  with  a  crowbar,  and  let  the  man  standing  on  the  wagon 
drive  them  with  a  heavy  maul,  a  man  on  the  ground  making  the 
holes  and  holding  the  posts  in  place  for  the  other  to  drive.  Using  a 
team  and  two  men  in  this  way,  posts  may  be  driven  very  rapidly  and 
will  be  much  firmer  than  if  set.  Old  iron  gas  or  water  pipe  cut  into 
suitable  lengths  is  sometimes  used  for  poultry-fence  posts,  and  is 
especially  adapted  to  use  in  rocky  land  where  wooden  posts  cannot 
be  driven.  The  pipe  post  has  the  great  advantage  that  it  need  not 
be  driven  straight  but  may  go  in  the  ground  at  any  angle  the  stone 
permits,  and  when  down  deep  enough  the  part  above  the  ground 
is  easily  brought  to  the  perpendicular  by  bending.  Wire  fencing 
is  attached  to  such  posts  with  wire.  The  fence  is  a  very  satisfac- 
tory one. 

For  all  wire  fences  the  posts  may  be  about  12  feet  apart,  and 
when  the  ground  at  the  point  where  a  post  should  go  contains 
stones  or  roots  which  make  it  difficult  to  dig  post  holes  or  im- 
possible to  drive  posts,  it  makes  no  difference  if  that  post  is  shifted 
a  foot  or  even  2  feet  in  either  direction  ;  for,  while  it  is  not  advis- 
able to  make  the  regular  distance  between  posts  more  than  1 2  feet, 
an  occasional  increase  or  decrease  of  the  distance  makes  no  notice- 
able difference  in  either  the  looks  or  the  strength  of  the  fence. 
When  a  single  board  is  used  at  the  base,  a  post  which  comes  in 
the  middle  of  a  board  may  be  set  out  of  regular  position  if  there  is 
any  advantage  in  it.  If,  as  is  usual  when  boards  are  used,  the  base 
is  carried  up  two  feet,  it  is  advisable  to  set  the  posts  eight  feet 
apart  and  break  joints  in  putting  on  the  boards,  for  with  light  posts 


100  POULTRY  CULTURE 

even  as  low  a  tight  board  fence  as  this  gets  a  strong  pressure 
from  the  wind,  and  to  make  it  durable  the  builder  must  make  use 
of  every  device  that  will  add  to  its  strength  without  materially  in- 
creasing the  cost.  In  general,  it  is  better  not  to  use  boards  at  all,  but 
to  make  the  lower  part  of  a  fence  of  fine  meshed  wire,  using  this 
on  both  sides  of  the  posts  if  valuable  males  are  to  be  kept  in  ad- 
joining yards.  The  first  cost  of  such  a  fence  may  be  greater  than 
when  boards  are  used  for  the  first  two  feet  from  the  ground,  but  it 
gives  better  circulation  of  air  in  small  or  narrow  yards,  looks  bet- 
ter, and  is  better  adapted  to  construction  on  stony  ground  and  for 
movable  houses.  For  temporary  yards,  especially  when  low  fences 
are  used,  the  easiest  way  to  prevent  males  fighting  through  the 
fence  is  to  make  parallel  fences  about  a  foot  apart.  In  many  cases 
the  extra  fence  may  be  removed  after  a  few  days,  when  the  birds 
have  become  familiar  with  each  other  and  are  less  inclined  to 
quarrel.  When  double  fences  are  used  on  ostrich  farms,  the  dis- 
tance between  the  fences  is  three  or  four  feet. 

Openings  in  fences.  Gates  are  the  weak  points  in  fences, — a  con- 
stant cause  of  trouble  to  the  poultry  keeper  whose  work  requires  that 
flocks  be  kept  separate.  It  is  hard  to  make  gates  that  will  be  quickly 
and  easily  opened  and  closed  by  a  person  carrying  or  wheeling  a 
load,  and  that  will  at  the  same  time  be  secure  when  closed.  The  best 
solution  of  the  problem  is  to  use  gates  as  little  as  possible.  The 
colony  system  does  away  with  all  gates  for  poultry,  the  gates  or  bars 
between  fields  being  adapted  only  to  larger  stock.  With  low  fences 
(up  to  three  feet  high)  that  a  man  of  medium  height  can  easily  step 
over,  gates  may  be  provided  or  omitted  according  to  the  amount  of 
use.  If  a  gate  is  needed  frequently,  as  for  passage  with  a  wheelbarrow 
or  to  drive  stock  from  one  yard  to  another,  a  gate  on  hinges  should 
be  provided.  If  an  opening  in  the  fence  would  be  used  only  at 
rare  intervals,  a  section  of  a  permanent  fence  may  be  made  movable. 
In  a  temporary  fence  of  netting  on  stakes,  openings  are  easily  made 
at  the  end  of  a  strip  of  the  netting,  the  removal  of  a  few  staples 
admitting  of  opening  the  space  between  two  stakes.  The  more  in- 
tensive the  plant,  and  the  longer  the  houses,  the  more  troublesome 
the  gate  problem  appears.  With  high  permanent  fences,  gates  to 
give  passage  to  all  yards  are  necessary,  even  though  used  only 
at  long  intervals.  If  there  is  direct  passage  from  each  interior 


YARDS  AND  FENCES-,  '^  ibf 

compartment  of  a  poultry  house  to  its  corresponding  yard,  the  out- 
side gates  need  be  used  only  in  taking  care  of  yards,  removing  and 
replacing  litter,  sand,  etc.,  and  with  such  infrequent  use  it  is  not 
necessary  to  make  their  opening  and  closing  in  any  degree  "  auto- 
matic." None  of  the  many  (so-called)  automatic  hinges,  springs, 
catches,  bolts,  etc.  used  on  outside  gates  work  well  for  both  open- 
ing and  closing  and  give  security  in  strong  winds  and  against  dogs 
or  other  small  animals  that  might  try  to  force  them.  For  this  reason 
most  poultry  keepers  whose  stock  is  quite  closely  yarded,  after  a 
little  experience  with  outside  gates,  abandon  their  use  for  regular 
passage  in  getting  from  flock  to  flock  in  the  same  building,  and 
go  through  the  house,  where  the  use  of  spring  hinges  and  weights 
to  make  doors  self-closing  and  secure  without  fastening  is  practical. 

Construction  of  gates  should  correspond  to  construction  of  fences, 
the  gates  being  made  as  light  as  is  consistent  with  strength.  For 
fences  up  to  four  feet  high  small  gates  may  be  of  either  lath  or  wire 
netting  on  a  light  frame  of  furring.  For  higher  fences  heavier 
material  should  be  used.  For  openings  for  the  passage  of  a  cart  the 
frame  must  be  stiff  and  well  braced.  The  width  of  a  single  gate 
is  usually  adapted  to  passage  with  a  wheelbarrow.  The  maximum 
requirement  is  three  feet.  For  the  ordinary-sized  garden  wheelbar- 
row two  feet  eight  inches  will  answer,  but  there  is  no  gain  in  cutting 
down  the  width,  and  it  is  an  advantage  to  have  gates  so  wide  that 
a  man  with  a  wheelbarrow  does  not  have  to  consider  his  knuckles. 

Hinges  for  light  gates,  little  used,  may  be  as  small  as  four  inches, 
either  a  strap  or  a  T- hinge  being  used.  For  gates  much  used,  heavier 
hinges  are  preferable.  A  hinge  too  light  for  the  use  to  which  it  is 
put  not  only  gives  out  quickly  but  allows  the  gate  to  sag  and  rock. 
Hooks  with  staples  or  screw  eyes  make  the  most  convenient  and 
economical  fastenings.  They  should  be  so  adjusted  that  the  gate 
is  held  snug  when  closed. 


CHAPTER    IX 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 

Poultry  architecture  in  general  is  conspicuous  for  endless,  and 
often  meaningless,  variety  in  proportions  and  details.  This  variety 
extends  to  every  form  of  structure  for  every  purpose.  From  the 
fact  that,  provided  a  few  simple  rules  are  observed  and  other 
factors  properly  handled,  equally  good  results  may  be  secured  in 

coops  and  houses  differing  in  many 
details,  such  variety  is  inevitable. 
But  variety  is  enormously  increased 
because  of  the  number  of  inexpe- 
rienced builders  who  incorporate 
into  the  plans'  that  they  use  un- 
tested ideas  of  their  own.  The 
features  thus  produced  are  some- 
times objectionable,  sometimes 
merely  superfluous,  rarely  of  any 
value,  though  some  such  features 
have  at  times  been  widely  imitated 
because  of  their  supposed  relation 

to  good  results  secured  or  claimed.  In  the  treatment  of  the  sub- 
ject in  this  chapter,  discussion  of  the  various  styles  of  structures 
required  for  different  kinds  of  poultry,  for  different  branches  of 
the  work,  and  for  breeds  at  different  stages  of  growth  will  be 
limited  to  the  more  representative  styles  illustrating  the  evolution 

1  This  is  the  type  of  poultry  house  built  by  the  early  settlers  in  Rhode  Island. 
The  houses  shown  in  this  and  the  two  following  illustrations  are  supposed  to  have 
been  built  in  the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth  or  early  in  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  to  have  been  used  continuously  for  poultry  ever  since.  As  originally  con- 
structed, the  ground  floors  were  several  feet  below  the  outside  ground  level,  but 
in  both  of  these  houses  the  floors  have  been  filled  in.  Access  to  the  loft  in  the 
Almy  house  is  by  inside  stairway.  The  loft  in  the  Borden  house  is  entered  direct 
from  outside,  as  shown  in  Fig.  101.  It  is  said  that  before  the  colony  system 
came  into  use,  nearly  every  farm  in  this  district  had  one  of  these  hous.es.  A  few 
remain  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  but  most  have  fallen  into  decay. 

102 


FIG.  99.    Stone  poultry  house  about 
200  years  old  on  the  farm  of  F.  W. 
C.  Almy,  Tiverton  Four  Corners, 
Rhode  Island l 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


103 


of  ideas  of  poultry  housing,  the  principles  now  best  established, 
and  the  range  within  which  variations  from  approved  plans  may 
be  made  without  disadvantage.  This  mode  of  treatment  presents 
substantially  every  gen- 
eral design  and  signifi- 
cant feature  that  has  at 
any  time  within  the  last 
seventy  years  been  ex- 
tensively used  or  seri- 
ously considered  by  ex- 
perienced poultrymen. 
Prime  considerations 
in  shelters  for  poultry. 
In  buildine  shelters  for  FlG>  I00>  Old  stone  poultry  house'  wdl  Preserved 

mk  bl  and  still  used,  on  the  Thomas  H.  Borden  farm, 

poultry  there  are  three  Tiverton  Four  Corners,  Rhode  Island 

prime    considerations : 

the  comfort  of  the  birds,  the  convenience  of  the  caretaker,  and 
the  cost.  These  items  are  not  always  in  accord.  A  building  or 
coop  that  is  comfortable  for  its  small  feathered  occupants  may  be 
very  inconvenient  for  the  person  who  takes  care  of  them,  and 
structures  planned  with  special  reference  to  the  convenience  of 

the  attendant  do  not, 
as  a  rule,  furnish  the 
most  satisfactory  con- 
ditions for  the  poultry 
kept  in  them.  Neither 
the  comfort  of  the  birds 
nor  the  convenience  of 
the  attendant  is  nec- 
essarily proportionate 
to  cost  of  construction. 
On  the  contrary,  elab- 
orate plans  and  expen- 
sive construction  often 
mean  more  work  for 

the  poultryman  and  the  least  favorable  conditions  for  the  poultry. 
In  planning  a  structure  for  any  purpose  the  problem  is  to  secure 
the  best  adjustment  of  these  three  things. 


FIG.  101.    Rear  of  Fig  100,  showing  door  for  en- 
trance to  loft  and  ventilation  of  lower  room 


104  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Principal   requirements   in  comfortable   shelters   for   poultry. 

Poultry  require  fresh  air,  sunlight,  dryness,  and  room.  Of  these 
by  far  the  most  important  is  fresh  air.  The  essential  condition  of 
dryness  depends  much  upon  free  circulation  of  fresh  air.  Air  and 
sunlight  are  nature's  best  disinfectants  and  germicides,  and  if  a  coop 
or  house  is  not  overcrowded,  and  the  birds  are  in  normal,  healthy 
condition,  a  properly  aired  and  sunned  structure  requires  much  less 
attention  to  cleanliness  than  one  that  is  deficient  in  these  particulars. 

Warmth  is  not  a  requisite  in  a  house  for  birds  whicJi  are  well- 
feathered,  healthy,  and  have  no  tender  appendages,  as  large  combs 
and  wattles.  For  unfeathered  young  birds  the  quarters  must  be 
heated  artificially,  or  so  arranged  that  the  heat  thrown  off  by 
the  birds,  supplementing  the  heat  of  their  bodies,  will  keep  the 
temperature  high  enough  to  prevent  chilling,  while  fresh  air  is 
still  admitted  in  sufficient  quantities.  The  latter  requirement  is  the 
theory  on  which  all  so-called  warm  houses  have  been  constructed. 
The  point  to  be  noted  is  that  the  unfeathered  birds  must  have 
warmth,  while  the  more  mature  stock  does  not  require  it.  All  these 
points  will  come  out  more  clearly  as  the  history  of  modern  ideas 
in  construction  is  briefly  sketched  in  succeeding  paragraphs. 

Earliest  form  of  shelter  for  poultry.  An  empty  barrel  (coop), 
still  often  used  and  recommended  for  a  hen  and  brood,  or  for  a  nest 
for  large  birds  (as  the  turkey  and  goose),  was  in  all  probability 
the  first  form  of  poultry  shelter.  Aside  from  the  interesting  fact 
that  the  adaptation  of  barrels  to  such  uses  gave  us  the  name  now 
used  for  a  small  shelter  or  inclosure,  especially  for  poultry,  the 
early  and  continued  use  of  the  barrel  to  shelter  poultry  has  peculiar 
significance  to  the  student  of  the  subject  because,  though  a  make- 
shift with  some  features  which  would  not  be  reproduced  in  a 
structure  designed  for  poultry,  the  barrel  placed  on  its  side  pre- 
sents in  a  primitive  way  what  are  now  recognized  as  the  first 
principles  in  poultry-house  construction :  sufficient  shelter,  perfect 
ventilation,  and  height  appropriate  to  the  size  of  the  creatures 
which  are  to  inhabit  it.  The  use  of  the  barrel  is  necessarily  limited 
to  a  few  purposes  and  a  small  number  of  individuals. 

Simplest  form  of  shelter  made  for  poultry.  The  familiar  style 
of  coop  called  the  A-shaped  coop,  or  tent  coop,  in  which  we  have 
shelter  provided  at  the  minimum  expense  for  materials  and  labor, 


FIG.  102.    Barrel  coops  in  use  in  New        FIG.  103.    Tent  coop  made  of  barrel 
England  in  1911  staves 


FIG.  104.    Modification  of  tent  coop,       FIG.   105.    Like    Fig.   104,  with   front 

with  open  front.  Hen  tethered  to  coop       partly   closed.     Tethering   hens   with 

by  string  attached  to  leg  broods  was  common  a  generation  ago 


FIG.  106.    Modern  double-pitch  roof         FIG.  107.    Rear  of  coop  in  Fig.  106, 
coop  on  farm  of  F.  W.  C.  Almy  showing  small  ventilator 

EVOLUTION  OF  THE  TENT  COOP 
105 


io6 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.   108.    Old  shoe  box  used  as 
a  chicken  coop 


FIG.  109.    Box  coop  with  wire  front, 
used  without  run 


FIG.  no.    Box  coop  used  with  run,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  112 


appears  to  have  been  first  made  of 
barrel  staves.  This  style  of  coop 
has  been  made  in  all  sizes,  from 
the  small  coop,  barely  large  enough 
for  a  hen  to  stand  and  turn  in,  to  a 
building  capable  of  accommodating 
a  hundred  fowls.  Such  large  sizes 
are,  however,  unusual.  The  most 
common  size  of  coop  of  this  type 
for  a  flock  of  adult  fowls  is  about 
8  feet  square  on  the  ground  and 
from  6  to  8  feet  high,  designed  to 
accommodate  from  twelve  to  fifteen 
hens.  This  style  of  coop,  in  small 
sizes,  was  probably  designed  quite 
as  early  as  the  barrel  was  used,  and 
has  been  used  ever  since.  It  is  not 
known  that  at  any  time,  down  to 
within  a  few  years,  those  making 
such  coops  gave  any  thought  to 
the  point  of  conformity  to  correct 
principles.  The  idea  in  building 
them  seems  always  to  have  been 
to  make  the  cheapest  thing  that 
would  serve  the  purpose.  Those 
who,  within  the  past  few 
generations,  have  tried  to 
make  the  best  possible 
coops  and  houses  for 
poultry  have  generally 
kept  away  from  this  type, 
considering  it  not  much 
of  an  advance  over  the 
makeshift  barrel  coop  or 
the  improvised  shelter  of 
poles  and  straw  or  corn- 
stalks sometimes  used  on 


farms.    They  overlooked 


FIG.  in.   Coops  with  A-shaped  slatted    FIG.  112.  BoxcoopslikethatinFig.no, 
runs.  (Photograph  from  M.  K.  Boyer)  with  square-topped  slatted  runs 


FIG.  113.   Coop  with  large  folding  run 

for  protection  from  cats.  Sides  of  i-inch, 

top  of  2-inch  mesh  wire 


FIG.  1 14.    Showing  wire  run  in  Fig.  1 13 

folded.    Sides  fold  under  top ;  ends,  with 

parliament  hinges,  fold  over  it 


FIG.   115.    Brood  of  goslings  in  coop    FIG.  116.    Ducklings  in  coop  with  wire 
with  stake  and  wire  yard  yard.    (Photograph  from  E.  T.  Brown) 

COOPS    WITH    RUNS    FOR    YOUNG    POULTRY 
107 


108  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  fact  that  this  type  of  coop,  or  house,  if  of  sufficient  depth  from 
front  to  rear  to  keep  the  occupants  protected  from  such  storms  as 
would  beat  in  at  the  front  (which  was  often  open  as  in  the  barrel 
coop),  provided  the  three  essentials, —  shelter,  ventilation,  and,  in 
the  common  sizes,  appropriate  height. 

Poultry  housed  under  the  same  roof  as  their  owner.  In  the 
British  Isles  the  keeping  of  poultry  in  the  dwelling  house  appears 
to  have  been  quite  common  as  recently  as  eighty  years  ago  and 
possibly  up  to  a  much  more  recent  date.  In  "  The  Poultry  Yard  : 
a  Practical  View  of  the  Best  Method  of  Selecting,  Rearing,  and 
Breeding  the  Various  Species  of  Domestic  Fowl,"  by  Peter  Boswell, 
of  Greenlaw,  the  author,  in  describing  primitive  methods  of  keep- 
ing poultry,  mentions  three  as  specially  suited  to  the  cottager. 
What  he  calls  the  "  simplest  form  "  is  a  lean-to  "at  the  gable 
end  of  the  cottage,  as  near  as  possible  to  the  opposite  side  of  the 
kitchen  fire,  at  which  part,  and  for  this  purpose,  the  wall  might 
be  made  thinner."  As  "the  cottager's  best"  he  recommends  "a 
part  of  the  space  next  the  roof,  so  often  unoccupied  and  useless," 
adding,  "  To  accomplish  the  object,  a  part  of  it  next  the  kitchen- 
fire  gable  end  should  be  partitioned  off,  floored,  and  fitted  up  with 
baulks  and  laying  places."  When  fowls  were  thus  housed,  they 
had  access  to  their  loft  by  means  of  a  hen  ladder  from  an  opening 
through  the  outer  wall  to  the  ground.  The  third  method,  called 
"  the  cottager's  own  "  but  recommended  only  to  those  who  could 
make  no  other  provision  for  poultry,  was  to  allow  the  fowls  to 
roost  in  "the  upper  part  of  the  space  at  the  door"  at  night  and 
run  in  the  road  by  day. 

The  custom,  among  the  poorest  class,  of  keeping  fowls  in  dwell- 
ings has  a  historical  value,  because  it  appears  that  the  thriftiness 
and  productiveness  of  many  flocks  so  kept  are  largely  responsible 
for  the  idea  that,  to  lay  in  winter,  fowls  must  be  kept  warm  ;  this 
seems  to  have  been  made  a  fundamental  principle  in  expert  poultry- 
house  construction  long  before  the  modern  period,  and  until  a  few 
years  ago  was  regarded  as  essential. 

Tight  houses.  The  theory  that  winter  egg  production  depended 
upon  high  temperatures  led  naturally  to  the  construction  of  tight 
houses.  That  having  been  assumed,  it  was  necessary  either  to  heat 
the  houses  artificially  or  to  so  construct  them  that  they  would 


FIG.  117.    Roosting  coop  for  weaned 

chicks,    used   by    Lester   Tompkins, 

Concord,  Massachusetts.    Doors  and 

ventilators  open 


FIG.  118.    Roosting  coop  for  weaned 

chicks.      Doors    closed,    ventilators 

open.    Board  shade  thrown  back  on 

roof  of  coop 


FIG.  119.    Roosting  coop  for  weaned 
chicks.    Board  shade  resting  on  half- 
open  doors 


FIG.  1 20.    Roosting  coop  with  doors 

closed    and    shade    down    to    close 

ventilators 


FIG.  121.    Roosting  cc 
C.  H.  Wyckoff  and  Son,  Aurora, 
New  York 


FIG.  122.    Same  as  Fig.  121,  panels 

in  lower  doors.    (Photographs  from 

Wyckoff  and  Son) 


TWO    NEAT,    CONVENIENT    ROOSTING    COOPS 
109 


FIG.  123.    Heated  poultry  house,  in  FIG.  124.    Cold  tight  poultry  house, 

central  New  York  in  Massachusetts 


FIG.  125.    Tight  house  with  straw  loft,        FlG.  126.    House  tight  except  front; 
in  central  New  York  has  open  joints  between  boards 


FIG.  127.    Section  of  scratching-shed        FIG.  128.    Cold  house  ;  single  boards 
house  with  a  closed  roosting  room        with  battens ;   doors  closed  only  to 
(Photograph  from  A.  F.  Hunter)  keep  out  rain  and  snow 


FROM  THE  HEATED  HOUSE  TO  THE  OPEN-FRONT  COLD  HOUSE 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY  1 1 1 

exclude  cold  and  retain  the  heat  thrown  off  by  the  occupants.  Arti- 
ficial heating  was  often  tried  and  usually  discarded  after  a  short 
trial  as  of  no  advantage,  though  in  a  trip  through  central  New  York 
some  years  ago  the  author  found  many  poultry  houses  in  which 
large  stoves  were  used  and  considered  an  advantage.  In  general, 


FIG.  129.    Tight  house  with  small  windows  ;  ventilation  through  doors 


"Tim 


FIG.  130.    Tight  house  with  large  windows  always  kept  slightly  open  at 
the  top  for  ventilation 

it  was  thought  better  to  build  houses  tight  and  warm.  To  accom- 
plish this,  various  methods  were  used.  The  cheapest  construction 
supposed  to  answer  the  purpose  was  made  by  covering  the  frame 
of  the  house  with  boards,  and  these  with  two  thicknesses  of  build- 
ing paper,  the  outer  one  weatherproof.  For  more  effective  protection 


112  POULTRY  CULTURE 

from  cold,  it  was  common  to  use  double  boards  with  paper  between 
and  weatherproof  paper  over  the  outer  boards.  Sometimes  the  out- 
side was  shingled  over  a  paper  sheathing.  Many  houses  were  built 
with  dead-air  spaces  throughout  the  walls,  made  by  putting  one 
layer  of  boards  and  one  of  paper  on  each  side  of  the  studding. 
Occasionally  houses  were  lathed  and  plastered  inside.  The  limit 
was  probably  reached  by  a  poultryman  in  an  eastern  state  who  made 
his  walls  with  three  thicknesses  of  boards,  three  of  paper,  and  two 
dead-air  spaces.  In  harmony  with  such  construction  were  the 
tight-fitting  doors  and  windows  used,  both  doors  and  windows 
often  being  double. 

Ventilation  in  tight  houses.  Theoretically,  ventilation  was  fur- 
nished either  by  ventilators  alone  or  by  ventilators  supplemented, 
during  fine  weather  or  through  the  warmer  hours  of  the  day,  by 
careful  adjustment  of  doors  and  windows  ;  but  many  houses  were 
built  without  ventilators,  on  the  theory  that  the  building  contained 
air  enough  to  supply  the  fowls  for  several  days,  if  doors  and  win- 
dows were  closed  as  long  as  that.  That  the  ventilators  usually  did 
not  ventilate  was  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  houses,  when  closed, 
became  damp  and  moisture  condensed  on  the  wall  just  as  often 
when  an  approved  method  of  ventilating  through  ventilators  was 
used  as  when  no  ventilators  were  provided. 

In  the  light  of  recent  experiences  with  cold  houses  it  seems 
probable  that  the  failures  of  most  of  the  old  methods  of  ventilation 
were  due  to  the  small  sizes  of  ventilators  used.  The  ineffectiveness 
of  these  was  often  aggravated  by  obstructions  in  the  ventilator  de- 
signed to  prevent  a  too  rapid  movement  of  air.  In  warm  houses 
the  problem  of  securing  sufficient  ventilation  while  retaining  the 
heat  is  a  serious  one,  especially  when  moisture  collects  on  interior 
walls  and  the  litter  on  the  floors  becomes  damp  and  the  air  inside 
the  house  moist  and  foul.  The  most  satisfactory  solutions  of  the 
problem  were  the  straw  loft  and  the  open-front  scratching-shed 
house,  the  first  designed  to  overcome  by  absorption  the  dampness 
in  the  closed  house,  the  other  providing  abundance  of  fresh  air 
in  the  daytime. 

Beginning  of  the  fresh-air  movement.  The  scratching-shed 
house  was  a  marked  step  in  the  direction  of  right  principles 
of  poultry-house  construction,  and  toward  the  open,  thoroughly 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY  1 1 3 

ventilated  house,  which,  it  is  now  generally  agreed,  is,  all  things 
considered,  the  best  type  of  poultry  house.  Houses  of  the  open- 
front  scratching-shed  type  have  been  used  here  and  there  since  the 
middle  of  the  last  century,  but  it  was  not  until  after  1 890,  when  the 
extension  of  interest  in  poultry  was  increasing  the  number  of  those 
who  were  having  trouble  in  warm  houses,  that  any  general  interest 
was  manifested  in  them.  Then  for  a  few  years  they  were  exploited 
as  a  remedy  for  the  difficulties  in  warm  houses,  and  became  very 
popular.  The  term  "  open-front  scratching-shed  house "  was 
applied  particularly  to  the  plan  used  and  exploited  by  one  man, 
but  the  idea  was  applied,  in  variously  modified  forms,  to  many  other 
styles  of  houses.  As  is  usual,  the  merits  were  much  exaggerated. 

Experience  with  the  open-front  scratching-shed  house  showed 
that  the  fowls  would  remain  in  the  open  shed  the  greater  part  of 
the  daytime,  and  that  the  capacity  of  the  two  compartments  thus 
became  only  the  capacity  of  the  one  compartment  that  the  birds 
frequented.  The  open  front  of  the  scratching  shed  was  intended 
to  be  open  only  during  fine  weather.  At  other  times  it  was  to  be 
closed  with  curtains,  which  were  at  first  of  oiled  cotton  cloth  on 
frames.  This  material  was  used  and  recommended  as  an  econom- 
ical substitute  for  glass  sash.  The  difficulty,  in  many  places,  of 
getting  oiled  cloth  led  to  a  very  general  substitution  of  ordinary 
cheap  cloth  and  burlap,  both  of  which  admitted  considerable  air 
through  the  meshes.  Improved  conditions  as  a  result  of  better  air 
thus  supplied  brought  about  a  very  general  use  of  such  materials  in 
place  of  glass  in  a  part  or  all  of  the  windows  of  closed  houses. 

The  idea  that  fowls  must  be  kept  warm  was  a  fundamental 
principle  in  the  management  of  fowls  in  scratching-shed  houses 
and  in  the  numerous  adaptations  of  the  plan  made  in  houses  of 
other  types.  The  birds  were  to  be  kept  warm  by  constant  exercise 
in  the  litter  in  which  their  grain  was  fed  on  the  floor  of  the  scratch- 
ing shed,  or  scratching  room  (as  the  case  might  be),  while  at  night 
they  kept  warm  in  the  close  roosting  room,  or  the  reduced  form 
of  it  called  the  roosting  closet,  or  roost  box,  built  with  a  hinged 
front  or  burlap  curtain  to  retain  the  heat  when  the  fowls  were  on  the 
roost.  It  was  commonly  observed  that  fowls  were  likely  to  be  more 
thrifty  and  free  from  disease  in  these  houses  when  the  keeper  neg- 
lected to  take  precautions  to  keep  them  warm  at  night.  Again,  when 


114  POULTRY  CULTURE 

curtains  of  cotton  cloth  and  burlap  exposed  to  the  weather  were 
rotted  out,  it  was  not  uncommon  to  delay  renewing  them,  and  no 
bad  effects  seemed  to  follow.  Such  things,  and  numerous  instances 
remembered  or  observed  of  flocks  of  fowls  doing  well  through  cold 
winters  in  mere  shells  of  houses,  gradually  broke  down  in  many 
minds  the  notion  that  fowls  must  have  warm  houses,  until,  in  the 
early  years  of  this  century,  progressive  poultry  keepers  began  to 
realize  that  many  of  the  despised  makeshifts  and  flimsy  structures 
of  more  primitive  times,  and  of  shiftless  poultry  keepers  of  their 
own  times,  were  essentially  better  than  their  best  structures  designed 
according  to  principles  upon  which  they  had  been  working. 

Houses  with  open  fronts.  In  these,  as  is  to  be  expected,  con- 
siderable variety  is  found,  but  in  general  a  house  of  this  type 
belongs  to  one  of  two  classes  :  Either  it  is  an  open  house  of 
such  proportions,  and  with  roosts  so  placed,  that,  theoretically,  the 
fowls,  when  roosting,  are  kept  warm,  because  they  are  so  far  from 
the  open  front  and  the  rate  of  movement  of  air  in  the  house  is  so 
slow  that  a  considerable  part  of  the  heat  they  diffuse  benefits  them  ; 
or  it  is  a  cold  house,  in  which  the  heat  thrown  off  by  the  birds  can 
have  no  appreciable  effect  on  the  temperature  about  them.  In 
houses  of  the  first  class  the  air  entering  the  front  is  supposed  to 
make  no  draft  to  which  the  fowls  on  the  roosts  would  be  exposed ; 
in  houses  of  the  second  class  drafts  are  disregarded.  Those  who 
advocate  and  use  the  warm  open-front  house  have  apparently  not 
fully  abandoned  the  idea  that  the  fowls  must  be  kept  in  a  tempera- 
ture sensibly  higher  than  that  outside,  and  must  be  protected  from 
direct  currents  of  air  entering  the  house  from  without.  Those  who 
advocate  and  use  cold  houses  hold  that,  within  a  limit  (practically 
the  degree  of  frost  that  the  combs  of  the  male  birds  will  withstand), 
fowls  may  be  accustomed  to  low  temperatures ;  that  it  is  not  the 
absolute  degree  of  cold  that  injures  them  or  stops  egg  production, 
but  the  variations  of  temperature ;  and  that  fowls  accustomed  to 
the  lowest  temperatures  and  free  supplies  of  fresh  air  are  least 
affected  by  these. 

No  best  house.  There  are  not  marked  regular  variations  of 
results  in  houses  differing  as  to  warmth  or  any  other  one  feature. 
The  fact  that  results  equally  good  in  every  way  have  been  ob- 
tained in  many  different  types  of  houses  under  a  great  variety  of 


FIG.  131.    Single-section  scratching- 
shed  house,  used  without  yard 


FIG.  132.    Colony  house  with  scratch- 
ing shed  attached 


FIG.  133.    Two  sections  of  scratching-shed  house  at  North  Carolina  Experiment 
Station.   (Photograph  from  the  station) 


FIG.  134.  Tillinghast  house  with  scratch-  FIG.  135.  Tolman  and  Woods  houses 
ing  floor  in  front  of  roosts.  (Photograph  at  Colorado  Agricultural  College 
from  Connecticut  Agricultural  College)  (Photograph  from  the  college) 

SCRATCHING-SHED    AND    SCRATCHING-ROOM    HOUSES 
"5 


Il6  POULTRY  CULTURE 

conditions  shows  that  the  important  thing  is  not  that  a  building 
for  poultry  shall  be  of  a  particular  pattern,  but  that,  whatever  its 
pattern,  conditions  in  it  be  regulated  to  meet  the  requirements  of 
the  birds  for  fresh  air  and  dry  quarters.  This  can  be  done  in  any 
type  of  house  that  is  not  radically  wrong.  But  the  warmer  the 
birds  are  kept,  —  the  higher  the  range  of  temperature  to  which 
they  are  accustomed, — the  more  necessary  it  is  that  the  attendant 
give  close  attention  to  ventilating  through  doors  and  windows,  and 
in  practice  it  is  too  often  found  impossible  to  attend  to  this  at  the 
proper  times.  The  cold  open  house  may  be  so  constructed  as  to 
require  no  manipulation  whatever  for  ventilation  and  no  attention 
to  doors  and  windows  except  for  the  exclusion  of  rain  and  snow. 
Between  these  extremes  are  intermediate  types  requiring  much  or 
little  regulation  according  to  construction  and  arrangement.  Each 
has  its  place.  Whoever  keeps  a  delicate  breed,  or  one  having  a 
tender  feature,  in  a  cold  locality  must  use  warm  houses  and  give 
as  much  attention  as  necessary  to  proper  regulation  of  conditions 
in  them.  Whether  it  is  more  profitable  to  do  this  than  to  keep 
a  hardier  breed  in  a  cheaper  building,  with  less  labor,  is  a  point 
that  each  must  determine  for  himself. 

Floor  dimensions.  In  a  structure  for  poultry  the  floor  area  is 
determined  on  the  basis  of  the  number  of  birds  to  be  kept  in  it 
and  the  proportion  of  time  that  they  are  to  be  confined  to  it.  The 
space  per  bird  required  varies  inversely  with  the  number  of  birds 
in  the  flock,  small  flocks  requiring  much  more  space  per  bird  than 
large  flocks,  because  the  bird  is  not  like  a  plant  or  a  tree,  or  like 
horses  and  cattle  in  barns,  located  in  one  place  and  constantly 
occupying  it,  but  each  bird  in  the  flock  has  the  use  of  the  entire 
floor,  less  only  the  space  actually  occupied  by  its  mates.  A  flock 
of  ten  or  twelve  hens  can  be  comfortably  housed  in  a  building  8 
feet  square  (which  allows  5  or  6  square  feet  of  floor  space  per 
fowl),  if  they  can  get  outside  for  a  good  part  of  the  time.  If  con- 
fined almost  constantly  to  the  house,  the  same  flock  should  have 
about  50  per  cent  more  floor  space.  With  increasing  size  of  flocks 
the  "per  hen"  space  may  be  reduced  gradually  until  from  seventy- 
five  to  a  hundred  hens  have  about  4  square  feet  each.  Very  small 
flocks  need  relatively  large  "per  hen"  areas.  A  single  bird  needs 
almost  as  much  room  as  ten  or  twelve. 


FIG.  136.    Two-pen  house  built  by  two 

men  in  less  than  half  a  day.    This  suits 

fowls  as  well  as  any  kind  of  house 


FIG.  137.    Four-pen  breeding  house  at 
Wisconsin  Agricultural  College.  (Photo- 
graph from  the  college) 


FIG.  138.   Two-pen  open-front  house  with  front  openings  shortened  to  keep  out 
rain  and  snow,  giving  same  result  as  projecting  roof  in  Fig.  137.    (Photograph 

from  C.  M.  Newton) 


FIG.  139.    Cotton-front  house  in 
Minnesota.     (Photograph   from 
D.  J.  Lane) 


FIG.  140.    Cotton-front  house  in 
Minnesota.     (Photograph   from 
D.  J.  Lane) 


OPEN-FRONT    AND    COTTON-FRONT    HOUSES 
117 


Il8  POULTRY  CULTURE 


it  of  poultry  structures.  In  small  structures  which  the 
attendant  does  not  have  to  enter,  or  enters  infrequently,  the  height 
of  the  building  is  usually  adapted  to  the  poultry ;  in  larger  struc- 
tures it  is  adapted  to  the  attendant.  The  lower  houses  furnish  the 
best  conditions  for  the  birds,  but,  though  that  point  has  not  been 
carefully  investigated,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  conditions  in  a 
house  three  or  four  feet  high  are  so  materially  better  than  in  a 
house  high  enough  for  a  man  to  stand  and  work  in  (about  six 
feet)  as  to  make  it  advisable  to  reduce  the  height  when  that  would 
mean  a  reduction  of  floor  space  and  of  the  size  of  flocks. 

Depth  of  poultry  structures.  The  depth  of  poultry  structures 
should  be  proportionate  to  their  height.  In  order  that  an  interior 
may  be  properly  sunned  and  ventilated,  the  depth,  or  distance  from 
the  front  to  the  rear  wall,  must  bear  such  proportion  to  the  height 
of  the  front  wall  that  sunlight  will  penetrate  well  back.  As  the 
elevation  of  the  sun  varies  with  the  seasons,  it  is  manifestly  impos- 
sible to  make  a  structure  of  fixed  height  and  width  in  which  the 
desired  condition  will  be  obtained  at  all  seasons,  but  if  the  height 
of  the  front  be  about  half  the  width  of  the  building,  the  average 
conditions  will  be  as  nearly  right  in  this  respect  as  they  can  be 
made.  Since  it  has  already  been  determined  that  the  height  of  the 
larger  shelter  for  poultry  should  be  near  the  minimum  height  of  a 
building  in  which  a  man  can  work  expeditiously,  it  follows  that  the 
fixing  of  such  a  standard  of  height,  and  of  the  relation  of  height 
to  width,  limits  the  width  to  about  twelve  or  fourteen  feet. 

In  a  single  house,  or  in  a  two-pen  house  which  may  be  lighted 
and  ventilated  with  windows  or  doors  on  the  sides  in  addition  to 
those  in  the  front  (south),  the  depth  may  be  as  much  greater  as  de- 
sired, the  side  openings  carrying  light  and  air  back.  This  arrange- 
ment is  not  adapted  to  the  continuous-house  plan  with  more  than 
two  pens,  because  the  side  openings  affect  only  the  end  compart- 
ments. It  is  not  nearly  so  much  used  as  the  plan  with  all  openings 
in  the  front.  Its  advantage  is  most  obvious  when  it  is  desired  to 
make  for  a  larger  flock  a  compartment  that  will  be  well  lighted 
and  ventilated  without  increasing  the  height  or  making  the  length 
so  great  that  the  faults  of  long,  narrow  houses  will  be  introduced. 
Even  with  the  use  of  side  openings  the  depth  is  rarely  increased 
more  than  50  per  cent  over  what  it  would  be  by  the  rule  given. 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY  119 

Standard-size  poultry-house  unit.  Taking  6  feet  as  the  most 
convenient  standard  for  a  full-height  poultry  house,  and  12  feet  as 
the  most  appropriate  depth  for  a  house  of  that  height,  we  have  two 
of  the  dimensions  for  a  standard  unit  of  size  of  poultry  house.  The 
advantages  of  a  square  floor  over  others  (to  be  explained  shortly) 
make  it  fitting  to  have  the  third  dimension  the  same  as  the  second 
(12  feet).  This  makes  the  standard-size  single  house  or  compart- 
ment 6  ft.  x  1 2  ft.  x  1 2  ft.  This  is  a  medium  in  form  and  di- 
mensions for  single  houses,  and  nearly  all  the  common  plans  of 
houses  may  be  treated  as  modifications  of  it ;  on  the  whole,  the 
most  convenient  unit  for  a  continuous  or  compartment  house. 
Diagrams  of  a  single  standard-size  poultry  house  will  be  found 
on  page  121. 

The  use  of  such  a  standard  or  basic  unit  in  the  study  of  poultry- 
house  plans  should  not  be  misunderstood.  It  may  be,  and  often  is, 
desirable  to  vary  these  dimensions,  but  such  a  house  has  capacity 
at  all  seasons,  in  all  climates,  for  as  large  a  flock  of  average  adult 
fowls  as  the  average  poultry  keeper  handles  to  advantage,  is  con- 
venient for  a  person  of  any  height,  may  be  fully  sunned  and 
aired  by  means  of  openings  in  the  front,  and  is  adapted  to  single- 
compartment  construction  or  to  any  number  of  compartments ; 
while  the  measurements  are  such  that,  in  nearly  all  dimensions  of 
lumber  required  in  construction,  1 2-foot  lengths  cut  to  advantage. 
A  house  of  these  dimensions  is  no  better  than  one  differing  some- 
what from  them,  but  these  measurements  are  most  suitable  for  a 
standard,  for  a  basis  of  a  comparison  of  features  in  poultry  houses, 
and  for  a  base  from  which  to  work  in  designing  poultry  houses.  Vari- 
ations from  them  should  be  made  for  a  definite  purpose.  If  they 
accomplish  that  purpose  without  introducing  something  objection- 
able, they  give  a  better  style  of  building  for  the  purpose.  If  a 
change  introduces  objectionable  features  as  well  as  advantages, 
these  must  be  considered  and  the  right  adjustment  found.  These 
points  will  be  illustrated  in  the  descriptions  and  discussions  of 
various  features  of  poultry  houses  in  following  paragraphs. 

Length  of  poultry  structures.  The  length  (front)  of  a  single 
poultry  house  (or  section)  should  approximately  equal  its  depth  or 
width.  The  greatest  economy  of  space  and  construction  is  at- 
tained in  a  square  building.  There  are,  however,  some  advantages 


120  POULTRY  CULTURE 

in  making  the  length  a  little  greater  than  the  width.  The  floor 
space  (and  so  the  capacity  of  the  house)  may  be  increased  without 
changing  height  and  width  or  materially  affecting  any  interior 
condition.  If  the  outside  runs  must  correspond  with  the  width  of 
the  house,  the  width  and  area  of  the  run  are  very  materially  in- 
creased. An  increase  of  25  per  cent  in  area  over  the  standard 
may  be  made  in  this  way,  but  it  is  not  advisable  to  attempt  to  add 
still  more  room  in  one  house  and  run  by  this  means.  Houses 
have  been  built,  of  standard  width  and  height,  with  length  up  to  or 
over  one  hundred  feet  and  used  for  one  large  flock.  At  one  time, 
also,  the  continuous  long  house,  divided  into  many  compartments 
by  partitions  of  wire  netting  or  slats,  was  a  favorite.  Many  houses 
of  that  type  may  still  be  found.  But  in  common  experience  it  is 
found  advisable  to  limit  the  length  of  the  house,  or  of  a  com- 
partment, to  very  nearly  its  width.  One  reason  for  this  is  that  the 
flock  in  an  almost  square  room  is  less  disturbed  by  the  attendant 
moving  about ;  the  birds  have  more  room  to  pass  him.  In  a  long 
house  the  birds,  if  at  all  shy,  will  rush  to  the  end  of  the  house, 
and  if  the  flock  is  large,  the  disturbance  and  crowding  may  be 
serious.  In  all  very  long  houses  that  the  writer  has  seen  in  use, 
the  flock,  though  large  for  a  single  flock,  has  been  only  about 
half  the  total  number  that  could  be  carried  in  the  same  space  in 
compartments  of  standard  size. 

The  objection  to  the  long  house  with  many  compartments  and 
open  partitions  between  is  that  the  air  draws  through  a  long,  nar- 
row, low  house  as  through  a  huge  flue,  making  the  house  very  un- 
comfortable. It  is  found  in  practice  that  it  is  not  advisable  to  build 
a  house  of  this  type  without  making  every  third  or  fourth  partition 
solid,  and  most  poultrymen  using  houses  of  this  kind  prefer  to 
make  every  other  partition  solid.  In  a  house  of  the  dimensions 
recommended,  it  does  not  appear  that  there  is  any  advantage  in 
making  every  partition  between  pens  tight ;  but  in  long  houses  of 
greater  height  and  width  the  draft  may  be  so  great  as  to  make  it 
advisable  to  do  this. 

Thus  it  is  evident  that,  to  make  the  best  house  conditions  for 
the  poultry,  the  quarters  for  each  flock,  or  family,  whether  de- 
tached from  the  quarters  of  other  flocks  or  adjoining  them,  must 
be  complete.  Then  the  long  house  of  many  compartments  appears 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


121 


not  as  a  single  house  but  as  a  series  of  standard  houses  so  placed 
that  the  sides  and  roofs  are  continuous,  and  that  one  end  of  each 
house,  after  the  first,  may  be  dispensed  with. 

The  significance  of  the  distinction  is  that  when  the  continuous 
house  is  considered  and  constructed  as  a  series  of  standard-size 
houses,  the  conditions  desirable  in  a  poultry  house  are  obtained  in 
the  same  way  in  every  part  of  the 
series,  but  that  when  the  series  is  re- 
garded as  the  unit,  almost  invariably 
a  construction  seems  admissible  which 
gives -different  conditions  in  different 
divisions,  and  very  unsatisfactory  con- 
ditions in  most  of  them. 

Styles  of  roof.  The  equal-slope 
double-pitch  roof  and  the  shed  roof 
are  the  styles  of  roof  most  used  for 
poultry  houses.  In  single,  very  nearly  FIG.  141.  Ground  plan 


FIG.  142.    Front  elevation 


FIG.  143.    Front  frame 


PLATTORM 


FIG.  144.    East  (end)  elevation, 
battened 


FIG.  145.  End  frame  and  cross 
section 


DIAGRAMS    OF    STANDARD-SIZE    POULTRY-HOUSE    UNIT 
(Scale,  i-inch  to  the  foot) 


ill 


g 

^     / 


G    « 

ij 

bX)  O 

C      -M 


1  B 

c    o 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


123 


square,  structures  the  sides  of  a  double-pitch  roof  may  face 
either  north  and  south  or  east  and  west.  In  houses  with  two  or 
more  compartments  a  double-pitch  roof  must,  as  a  rule,  face  north 
and  south ;  in  single- 
compartment  houses  the 
tent-roof  type  of  con- 
struction may  be  used  (or 
approached),  with  sides 
very  low  and  the  slopes 
of  the  roof  facing  east 
and  west.  Shed  or  single- 
pitch  roofs  on  single- 
compartment  houses  may 
pitch  in  any  direction  desired  ;  on  houses  with  two  or  more  com- 
partments they  must,  as  a  rule,  pitch  either  north  or  south,  —  and 
preferably  south,  because 

the     greatest 

sun    in    the 


FIG.  i 


End  frame  of  long  house  in 
Figs.  146  and  147 


FIG.  149.    Partition  (next  to  roosts)  between 
pens  in  house  in  Figs.  146  and  147 


that    gives 
amount    of 

house  with  the  most  eco- 
nomical construction.  Be- 
sides these  simple  styles 
of  roof  several  others  are 
occasionally  used. 

Double-pitch  roofs  with 
unequal    sides    are   some- 
times made  to  adapt  the  roof  to  other  features  of  construction. 
Thus  in  some  brooder  houses  with  sunken  walks  in  the  rear,  the 
roof  has  a  long  pitch  to  the  south, 
over  the  pens,  and  a  short  pitch 
to  the  north,  over  the  walk.     In 
some  of  the  open-front  plans  of 
houses,  too,  the  front  slope  of  the 
roof  is  longer  than  the  other,  and 
sometimes  at  a  different  angle.    In 
what  is  known  as  the  semimonitor- 
top  style  of  construction  the  part 

of  the  house  under  the  front  slope  is  several  feet  lower  than  that 
under  the  rear  slope  of  the  roof,  to  allow  placing  windows  in  the 


FIG.  1 50.    Partition  between  pen  and 
alley  in  house  in  Figs.  146  and  147 


FIG.  151.    Shed  roof  sloping  to  rear 
Best  style  of  this  roof 


FIG.  152.    Semimonitor-top   roof 
(Photograph  from  H.  P.  Nottage) 


FIG.  153.   Brooder  house  with  double-pitch  roof.    Long  slope  to  front,  short 
slope  to  rear.    (Photograph  from  Fisher's  Island  Farm) 


FIG.  154.    Open-front  house  with  shed     FIG.  155.     Rear   of    Fig.  154.     (Photo- 
roof  sloping  to  front  graph  from  L.  A.  Doize,  New  Orleans) 

STYLES    OF    POULTRY-HOUSE    ROOFS 
124 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


125 


perpendicular  space  above  the 
lower  roof,  for  the  better  light- 
ing and  ventilation  of  the  rear 
part  of  the  house.  Occasion 
for  introducing  such  features 
usually  indicates  fault  in  the 
general  design  of  the  structure. 

Walls.  Walls  of  structures 
for  poultry  should  always  be 
perpendicular.  This  applies  to 
every  form  and  size  of  house 
or  coop  designed  for  poultry. 
Whatever  may  be  tolerated  in 
a  converted  coop  or  building, 
the  walls  of  one  designed  for 
poultry  should  be  perpendicular. 
When  one  function  of  the 
glass  window  was  to  warm  the 
interior  of  a  closed  building 
by  the  sun,  houses  were  built 
with  sloping  front  walls,  in 
order  that  the  windows  might 
be  placed  at  the  angle  that 
would  make  them  most  effec- 
tive for  that  purpose.  This 
form  of  construction  was  un- 
satisfactory, even  when  it  had 
supposed  advantages. 

Floors.  Within  the  same 
walls  and  under  the  same  roof, 
floors  should  be  on  the  same 
level.  They  are  always  made 
so  in  small  buildings,  but  when 
long  houses  are  placed  on 
ground  which  slopes  with  the 
length  of  the  house,  builders 
sometimes  make  a  building 
with  roof  following  the  slope 


FIG.  156.    Breeding  stock  and  feed  house 
at  Colorado  Agricultural  College.   (Photo- 
graph from  the  college) 


FIG.  157.    Raised  walk  in  front  of  house 

in  Fig.  156.    (Photograph  from  Colorado 

Agricultural  College) 


FIG.  158.   House  with  covered  raised 
walk  in  front 


126  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  the  land.  This  may  not  be  a  serious  fault  if  there  are  tight 
cross  partitions  at  short  distances,1  but  if  the  length  of  the  space 
between  close  division  walls  is  greater  than  about  thirty  feet,  there 
is  likely  to  be  a  quite  marked  difference  in  temperature  between 
the  higher  and  lower  ends,  and  drafty  conditions  on  that  account. 
The  exterior  of  such  a  building  is  unsightly.  When  the  ground  is 
so  uneven,  the  best  way  is  to  make  a  series  of  sections  on  different 
levels,  each  higher  section  one  or  two  steps  above  the  next  lower 
one,  the  length  of  the  sections  to  be  determined  by  the  grade. 

Eccentric  features  in  poultry  houses  and  coops  are  to  be  avoided. 
As  a  rule,  the  plainest,  simplest  style  of  structure  that  will  answer 
the  purpose  gives  best  general  satisfaction.  Exterior  features  de- 
signed to  give  special  adjustments  of  a  coop  or  house  to  a  variety 
of  conditions  are  often  objectionable  because  of  the  attention  that 
they  require.  Elaborate  interior  arrangements  designed  to  save  labor 
rarely  accomplish  that  object.  Extra  features,  outside  or  inside, 
add  greatly  to  the  original  outlay  for  equipment,  and  to  the  amount 
of  investment  on  which  interest,  taxes,  etc.  must  be  earned  before 
actual  revenue  is  obtained.  With  capital  limited,  as  it  usually  is, 
it  is  much  better  policy  to  cut  out  all  unnecessary  features  and  to 
save  as  much  as  possible  for  stock  and  for  working  capital.  One 
of  the  most  common  mistakes  in  poultry  keeping  is  that  of  put- 
ting so  much  of  the  available  capital  into  buildings  that  the  poultry- 
man  is  hampered  for  a  long  time  for  money  for  other  expenses. 

Materials  used  for  poultry  structures.  Wood  is  more  extensively 
used  than  all  other  materials  combined.  Nearly  all  movable  build- 
ings and  coops  are  made  of  wood,  and  it  is  the  principal  material 
in  most  of  the  larger  structures.  When  it  is  desired  to  make  the 
cost  of  construction  as  low  as  possible,  and  a  tight  construction  is 
necessary,  the  cheapest  of  lumber  is  used,  and  the  inside  of  the 
building  covered  with  a  substantial  roofing  paper.  If  it  is  not 
necessary  to  have  tight  walls  and  roof,  a  grade  of  boards  as  much 
better  as  the  builder  desires  may  be  used.  With  common  boards 
this  gives  the  cheapest  construction.  Shingles  were  formerly  used 

1 1  have  seen  long  nursery  brooder  houses  for  ducklings  with  floor  following 
the  slope  of  the  land,  that  seemed  to  work  well  without  partitions,  but  these  were 
artificially  heated,  and  the  partitions  between  pens  were  much  higher  than  the 
height  of  the  ducklings. 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY  127 

very  extensively  to  cover  sides  as  well  as  roofs  of  poultry  buildings, 
but  as  they  have  steadily  risen  in  price  and  gone  down  in  quality, 
while  the  quality  of  roofing  paper  has  greatly  improved,  shingles 
are  now  little  used,  except  when  conformity  to  surrounding  build- 
ings requires  it. 

The  extensive  use  of  wood  for  buildings  for  poultry  comes  about 
because  it  is  usually  the  cheapest  available  material,  and  because  it 
is  material  in  which  almost  every  poultry  keeper  who  wishes  to  build 
his  own  buildings  can  work.  Any  material  used  for  other  buildings 
may  be  used  :  iron,  stone,  brick,  clay,  cement,  are  all  used  occa- 
sionally for  poultry  houses.  As  a  rule  these  are  more  economical 
than  wood  only  when  they  can  be  had  very  cheap  or  the  poultry- 
man  is  expert  in  working  in  them. 

Glass  is  used  only  as  necessary  to  give  light  when  doors  and 
curtains  are  closed.  For  many  years  it  was  the  practice  to  use  as 
much  glass  as  possible,  in  order  to  heat  the  house  through  the 
windows  when  the  sun  shone.  With  the  introduction  of  fresh-air 
types  of  houses  the  area  of  glass  used  has  been  reduced,  and 
sometimes  glass  has  been  discarded  for  cotton  cloth  or  burlap. 

Cotton  cloth  is  extensively  used  in  both  door  and  window  open- 
ings. Its  use  depends  primarily  on  its  porosity :  it  admits  air.  With 
a  sufficient  area  of  cloth  to  give  what  light  is  required  on  dull  days 
with  all  openings  closed,  no  glass  is  needed.  The  relative  amounts 
of  glass  and  cloth  to  be  used  must  be  determined  according  to  the 
design  of  the  house  and  local  conditions. 

Floor  materials.  Wherever  the  soil  is  of  suitable  character  (sand 
or  loam,  or  a  mixture  of  the  two),  and  drainage  such  that  it  can  be 
kept  in  good  condition,  an  earth  floor  is  the  best  for  all  poultry 
buildings.  Where  drainage  is  defective  or  the  soil  contains  much 
clay,  movable  structures  should  have  floors  of  wood,  and  permanent 
structures  floors  of  wood  or  cement. 

Quality  of  construction.  The  question  of  durability  is  of  less 
importance  in  the  construction  of  poultry  coops  and  buildings  than 
in  most  other  lines  of  construction.  Movable  structures  of  any  size 
must  be  strong  enough  to  stand  the  handling  and  moving  to  which 
they  are  subjected.  Permanent  buildings,  being  nearly  all  low, 
one-story  buildings,  may  be  of  very  light  construction,  as  will  be 
shown  in  illustrations.  All  that  is  necessary  is  that  there  shall  be 


128 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  159.    Incubator  house  at  Ontario  Agricultural 
College.    (Photograph  from  the  college) 


frame  enough  to  hold  the  shell  firmly,  that  it  be  securely  nailed,  and 
that  the  sills  shall  be  either  so  placed  or  protected  that  they  will  not 
rot,  or  put  in  so  that  when  decayed  they  may  be  easily  replaced. 

Some  of  the  most  prac- 
tical poultrymen  put 
sills  right  on  the  earth 
and  replace  them  when 
necessary,  finding  it 
cheaper  in  the  long 
run  to  do  this  in 
buildings  of  light  con- 
struction than  to  use 
heavy  sills  and  pro- 
tect them  to  prevent 
the  decay  of  the  wood. 
Durability  has  to  be  considered  most  in  connection  with  materials 
which  are  shorter-lived  than  wood,  and  with  parts  that  receive  wear. 
When  roofing  paper  is  used  for  covering,  it  is  economical  to  use 
paper  of  good  quality  that  with  proper  care  may  be  expected  to  last 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  years.  Cloth  is  now  often  preferred  to  glass  for 
openings,  because  it  is  cheaper  and  admits  some  air ;  but  cloth  or 
like  porous  material  is  so  short-lived,  when  exposed  to  the  weather, 
that  in  the  long  run  it  may  be 
cheaper  to  use  glass  and  leave 
windows  partly  open,  as  we  do  in 
our  dwellings.  If  cement  floors 
are  used  they  should  be  substan- 
tially built ;  a  common  mistake  is 
to  make  them  too  thin  and  with 
an  insufficient  foundation.  Such 


floors  crack  and  settle  and  become 
uneven  and  very  unsatisfactory, 
and  the  faults  cannot  be  rem- 
edied except  by  taking  off  the  old 
cement  and  remaking  the  floor. 

Warmth  is  not  given  such  consideration  as  formerly  in  the  con- 
struction of  houses  for  adult  and  weaned  birds,  but  in  building  in- 
cubator and  brooder  houses,  or  other  special  buildings  which  are  to 


FIG.  160.  Rear  of  long  poultry  house 
at  the  Ontario  Agricultural  College. 
Gables  and  ventilators  break  the  long 
straight  lines.  (Photograph  from  the 
college) 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


129 


be  heated,  it  is  necessary  to  use  double  walls.  For  open-front  or 
fresh-air  houses  all  that  is  necessary  is  to  make  the  roof,  back,  and 
ends  wind- and  rain-proof.  The  front  need  not  be  of  tight  con- 
struction ;  indeed,  it  has  not  been  shown  that,  for  birds  not  easily 
affected  by  frost,  there  is  any  advantage  in  making  the  house  with 
perfectly  tight  roof,  back,  and  ends.  On  the  whole,  the  present 
tendency  is  to  make  all  kinds  and  sizes  of  structures  for  poultry 
of  the  lightest  construction  that  will  serve. 

Preservation  of  structures.  When  undressed  lumber  is  used  with- 
out covering,  no  paint  or  wash  is  required,  nor  is  it  necessary  to 
put  dressing  or  preservative  of  any  kind  on  shingles.  The  wood 
will  last  long  enough  without  paint  to  make  .the  unpainted  building 
cheaper  in  the  long  run,  for  such  rough  buildings  cost  more  to 
paint  than  others.  When  dressed  lumber  is  used  for  exteriors,  it  is 
advisable  to  paint  it  with  oil  and  lead  or  mineral  paints.  There  is 
no  advantage  in  using  dressed  lumber  unless  it  is  painted.  Sash 
should  be  kept  well  painted.  Roofing  papers  last  very  much  longer 
if  coated  with  paint  or  tar  about  once  in  two  or  three  years.  The 
manufacturer's  instructions  as  to  the  kind  of  coating  to  use 
should  be  followed,  for  some  roofings  require  special  dressings. 
No  treatment  for  preservation  is  necessary  on  ordinary  rough  in- 
teriors, or  on  smooth  surfaces  of  lumber  used  for  frame  or  sides,  but 
if  any  doors  or  frames  have  closely  fitted,  glued  joints,  it  is  better 
to  keep  them  painted.  Whitewash  has  been  extensively  used  in 
poultry  houses,  but  as  a  cleanser,  disinfectant,  and  insecticide 
rather  than  for  preservative  properties.  Many  poultrymen  will  not 
whitewash  interiors  of  houses,  claiming  that,  as  the  whitewash 
accumulates  on  the  walls,  it  holds  moisture  in  damp  weather  to 
an  objectionable  extent. 

Structures  for  different  kinds  of  poultry.  Poultry  coops  and 
houses  are  all  designed  on  the  same  general  principles  and  vary 
little  in  appearance  or  arrangement.  The  same  coop  will  answer 
for  small  chicks,  ducks,  turkeys,  or  geese,  but  a  brood  of  any  of  the 
others  will  so  quickly  outgrow  a  coop  that  would  serve  for  chicks 
until  weaned  that  it  is  advisable  to  provide  larger  coops  or  shelters 
for  them  from  the  outset.  The  same  construction  of  individual 
brooder  or  brooder  house  will  answer  for  young  chickens  and 
young  ducks,  except  that  for  young  chickens  the  partitions  must 


130  POULTRY  CULTURE 

be  higher.  After  they  are  feathered,  no  young  birds  need  shelter 
during  the  summer  and  fall  except  for  protection  from  enemies. 
Ducks  and  geese  will  remain  outside  at  night  by  choice  even  in 
severe  winter  weather,  except  when  it  is  snowing  or  raining  heavily. 
Duck  growers  hatching  early  ducklings  usually  confine  the  ducks 
indoors  at  night  in  winter  and  until  all  have  laid  in  the  morning.1 
This  is  done  to  prevent  eggs  being  chilled  and  also  because  it  is 
believed2  that  egg  production  is  better  than  when  the  ducks  are 
allowed  to  follow  their  natural  inclination  and  remain  much  out 
on  snow  and  ice. 

Turkeys  prefer  to  roost  in  the  open  the  year  round,  either  in 
trees  or  in  sheltered  places,  as  beside  a  barn  where  they  are  not 
fully  exposed  to  winds  from  cold  quarters.  The  roosting  habit  of 
peafowl  is  the  same  as  that  of  turkeys.  Guineas  also  remain  out 
unless  very  severe  weather  drives  them  to  cover,  when  they  take 
refuge  with  hens  or  in  any  convenient  place. 

Pheasants  prefer  to  roost  in  low  trees  or  shrubbery,  but  even 
the  wild  birds  will  come  to  farm  poultry  houses  when  storms 
are  very  severe  and  shut  off  their  food  supplies.  When  coops  or 
buildings  are  required  to  confine  any  of  these,  such  a  building  as 
is  used  for  fowls  will  answer. 

NOTE.  The  photographs  and  diagrams  on  the  preceding  pages  of  this  chapter 
were  selected  with  reference  to  the  accompanying  text.  Those  which  follow, 
supplementing  them,  show  more  fully  the  applications  of  principles,  the  details 
of  construction,  and  the  adaptability  of  the  simplest  designs  and  most  desirable 
features  to  varied  climates. 

1  As  a  rule,  waterfowl  lay  their  eggs  about  daybreak,  not  more  than  a  few  hours 
earlier  or  later. 

2  The  author's  personal  experience  in  duck  growing  is  not  sufficient  to  enable 
him  to  say  positively  that  allowing  ducks  to  get  their  feet  cold  is  not  necessarily 
detrimental  to  laying.    A  great  many  poultry  keepers  consider  that  allowing  hens 
to  run  on  snow  and  eat  snow  hinders  egg  production,  though  in  the  case  of  hens 
the  view  is  plainly  a  fallacy,  as  any  one  may  discover  who  will  allow  hens  comfort- 
ably housed  in  fresh-air  houses  with  littered  floors  to  follow  their  inclination  about 
going  on  snow  and  ice  and  walking  about  in  icy  water.    It  will  be  found  that  even 
the  feather-legged  breeds  with  heavy  foot  feathering  suffer  no  discomfort  when 
they  can  go  at  will  from  snow  or  a  sloppy  yard  to  a  floor  of  dry  litter  which  quickly 
dries  their  feet.    On  a  bare  or  damp  floor  the  feathers  and  feet  would  dry  slowly. 
On  a  bare  earth  floor  they  would  become  very  dirty  before  drying.    In  either  case 
the  effects  would  be  bad.    Ducks  and  geese  sitting  (rather  lying)  out  on  snow  or 
ice  do  not  keep  their  feet  on  the  ground  but  raise  them  and  work  them  into  the 
feathers  at  the  side  of  the  body,  where  they  are  well  protected. 


FIG.  161.   Primitive  coop.  No  window;       FIG.  162.   Primitive  coop.  No  window; 
small  door.    Used  on  a  Rhode  Island       large    door.     (Photograph    by    II.   de 
farm  Courcy,  Ireland) 


FIG.  163.   Neat  coop  used  on  a  Rhode    FIG.  164.    Coop  like  that  in  Fig.  163,  with 
Island  farm.    lien  confined  wire  screen  over  part  of  window 


FIG.  165.    Another  common  type  of        FIG.  166.    Good  coop  or  small  house 
coop  in  Rhode  Island  used  on  a  Maine  farm 

ANCIENT    AND    MODERN    POULTRY    COOPS 
13* 


FIG.  167.  Two-compartment  coop  for       FIG.  168.    Coops  placed  in  pairs  with 
one  indoor  brooder.  (Photograph  from        cloth    shade    between.     (Photograph 
J.  C.  Pattison)  from  E.  T.  Brown) 


FIG.  169.    Small  colony  houses  at  Connecticut  Agricultural  College.   (Photograph 

from  the  college) 


FIG.  170.  Two-compartment  house  for 

two    indoor    brooders    at    the    Maine 

Experiment  Station 


FIG.  171.    Same  style  as  Fig.  170.    Dif- 
ferent construction.  (Photographs  from 
the  station) 


COOPS    FOR    INDOOR    BROODERS    AND    GROWING    CHICKS 

132 


FIG.  172.    Coop  with  window  in  door  FIG.  173.    Coop  with  chick  door 


FIG.  174.    Convertible  front ;  either        FIG.  175.    With  Dutch  doors.    (Photo- 


open  or  closed 


graph  from  J.  C.  Pattison) 


FIG.  176.    Upper  part  of  front  open      FIG.  177.  Wide  spaces  between  boards 

(PhotographfromDepartmentof  Agri-      on  front  and  one  side.     (Photograph 

culture,  Victoria,  British  Columbia)         from  Rhode  Island  Agricultural  College) 

COOPS    FOR    INDOOR    BROODERS    AND    GROWING    CHICKS 

133 


FIG.  178.    Piano-box  house  used  by        FIG.  179.    House  mostly  of  piano-box 

P.  R.  Park  for  small  pen  of  breeding        boards ;    made     in    an    emergency ; 

stock  in  summer  always  satisfactory 


FIG.  180.    Open-front  house  at  North       FIG.  181.  Open  front  with  hood.   (Pho- 
Carolina  Agricultural  College.  (Photo-       tograph  from  Department  of  Agricul- 
graph  from  the  college)  ture,  Victoria,  British  Columbia) 


FIG.  182.    English  portable  colony  FIG.  183.    Rear  of  Fig.  182.    (Photo- 

house  on  wheels  graphs  from  E.  T.  Brown) 

SMALL    HOUSES  I     STATIONARY    AND    PORTABLE 
'34 


FIG.  184.    Cornell  house  with  open 

joints    between    clapboards    made 

by  placing  wedges  between  boards 

and  studs 


FIG.  185.    Same  as  Fig.  184,  half  fin- 
ished.    (Photographs  from  New  York 
State   Agricultural    College  at  Cornell 
University) 


FIG.  186.    Portable  house  at  Macdonald    FIG.  187.    Colony  house  used  by  J.  H. 
College.    (Photograph  from  the  college)      Curtiss,  West  Norwell,  Massachusetts 


FIG.  188.    Small  house  used  by  author.     FIG.  189.    Same  as  Fig.  188,  with  wider 
Battened  only  on  back  and  rear  half     door.     Better  for  sunny  days,  not  as 
of  sides  g°od  for  storms 

SMALL  HOUSES  I  STATIONARY  AND  PORTABLE 
135 


FIG.  190.    Low  colony  house  on  farm  of 

F.  W.  C.  Almy,  Tiverton  Four  Corners, 

Rhode  Island 


FIG.  191.    Full-height  house  used  by 

F.  W.  C.  Almy ;   more  window  space 

in  front 


FIG.  192.    Shed-roof  colony  houses  at 

Cornell.     (Photograph   from    Cornell 

Department  of  Poultry  Husbandry) 


FIG.  193.     Rear  of  shed-roof  houses 

used  by  F.  W.  C.  Almy,  showing  small 

ventilating  opening  in  rear  wall 


FIG.  194.    Full-height   colony   house 
used  at  Macdonald  College.    (Photo- 
graph from  the  college)    • 


FIG.  195.   Full-height  colony  house  on 

round   (pole)   sills.    (Photograph  from 

J.  C.  Pattison) 


COLONY  POULTRY  HOUSES 
136 


FIG.  196.    House  for  breeding  stock  at  Maine  Agricultural  College.    Raised  walk 
in  front.    (Photograph  from  the  college) 


FIG.  197.    Cotton-cloth-front  house  at  Provincial  Poultry  Breeding  Station, 
Edmonton,  Alberta.    (Photograph  from  the- station) 


FIG.  198.    Interior  of  Fig.  197,  showing  nests  and  roost 
CLOTH-FRONT    POULTRY    HOUSES    IN    NORTHERLY    LATITUDES 


FIG.  199.    A  summer  location 


FIG.  200.    Moving  a  colony  hou; 


FIG.  201.    Winter  arrangement  of  colony  houses 

SMALL    COLONY    HOUSES    AT    MICHIGAN    AGRICULTURAL    COLLEGE 

(Photographs  from  the  college) 

138 


1 


8*fc/0 


U 
^ 


12.' 4" 


•H 


FIG.  202.    Front  elevation  of  small  colony  house  on  opposite  page 


FIG.  203.    Cross  section  of  house  on  opposite  page 


3      T 

— 

•  <-2 

'4 

'- 

M 

SLI 

H 

«-«•** 

C 

-f 

J 

k 

— 

rf 

* 

V) 

r 

lo- 

W 

dt 

\ 

cL 

i          i 

SCS 

i                 et 

i                t= 

i 

24' 


FIG.  204.    Front  elevation  of  farmer's  large  colony  house  (Fig.  207) 
PLANS   OF   COLONY   HOUSES   AT   MICHIGAN  AGRICULTURAL  COLLEGE 

139 


24' 


1 

B  H  IL 

3 

(  "     B 

3  1  1  H      

i       i       I       i       !       i       ! 

1 

V 

• 

/?OQST.S 

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r 

DROPPING   SO/JRO 

/  4.'                                                         T 

FEED  BOX 

/  T 

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i 

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<0 

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n           rn 

FIG.  205.    Ground  plan 


FIG.  206.    Cross  section 


GROUND    PLAN    AND    CROSS    SECTION    OF    FARMER  S    COLONY   HOUSE 

IN    FIG.  207 

(Drawings  for  Figs.  202-207  from  Michigan  Agricultural  College) 

140 


FIG.  207.    Farmer's  colony  house  at  Michigan  Agricultural  College.    (Photograph 

from  the  college) 


FIG.  208.    Front  view  of  house,  open       FIG.  209.  Rear  of  Fig.  208.  Basement 
both  front  and  rear,  at  West  Virginia       scratching  shed.    (Photographs  from 
Experiment  Station  the  station) 


FIG.  210.    Cloth-front  colony  brooder  houses  at  Provincial  Poultry  Breeding 
Station,  Edmonton,  Alberta.    (Photograph  from  the  station) 

LATE    STYLES    OF    POULTRY    HOUSES 


-14 


28' 

FIG.  211.    Ground  plan 


8x10 

FIG.  212.    Front  elevation 


FIG.  214.    Rear  elevation 

TWO-PEN    HOUSE DESIGNED    BY    D.   J.    LAMBERT 

(Drawings  from  Rhode  Island  Agricultural  College) 
142 


COOPS  AND   BUILDINGS   FOR  POULTRY 


143 


FIG.  215.    Side  elevation  of  house  on 
page  142 


FIG.  216.    Cloth-curtain-front  house  de- 
signed by  D.  J.  Lambert.    (Photograph 
and  drawings  from  Rhode  Island  Agri- 
cultural College) 


Description  of  house,  Figs.  211-215. 

This  house  is  designed  for  100  hens 
in  two  flocks  of  50  each.  In  winter 
the  flocks  may  be  increased  to  60. 
The  designer's  object  was  to  bring  the 
roosts  together  at  the  middle  of  the 
house,  use  drop  curtains  in  front  of 
the  roosts  and  so  keep  the  birds  warm 
at  night,  while  the  large  open  spaces 
in  the  front  gave  thorough  ventilation 
of  the  .interior  apart  from  the  roosting 
closets.  As  the  reader  will  note,  the  de- 
sign is  an  adaptation  of  the  scratching- 
shed  plan.  In  practice  it  was  found 
that  the  use  of  curtains  in  front  of  the 
roosts  was  unnecessary  —  that  the  con- 
ditions and  results  were  better  without 
them.  This  is  the  usual  experience 
when  such  direct  comparisons  are 
made.  Mr.  Lambert's  house  stands 
far  from  other  buildings  in  a  rocky 
pasture,  and  the  flocks  in  it  are  given 
range  on  alternate  days  or  half  days 
as  convenient.  In  most  situations  it 
would  be  better  to  have  two  large 
yards,  or  divide  the  pasture. 


FIG.  217.    Isometric  projection  of  Fig.  216.    East  end  and  rear 


-1C- 


Nest  Boxes  14*x  14  _  12  deep 


FIG.  218.   Ground  plan  of  Fig.  216 


Chestnut  Post 
(Round ) 


1  >-2  v ; 


U         U 

FIG.  219.    Isometric  projection  of  Fig.  216.    West  end  and  front 
144 


FIG.  220.    Long  house  for  breeding  and  exhibition  stock   at  Wisconsin  Agri- 
cultural College.    (Photograph  from  the  college) 


FIG.  221.    House  for  breeding  and  exhibition  stock  at  Iowa  Agricultural  College 
(Photograph  from  the  college) 


FIG.  222.    Three  sections  of  front  of  2oo-ft.  house  at  Pittsfield  Poultry  Farm 
(Photograph  from  Pittsfield  Farm) 

LONG    POULTRY    HOUSES 

MS 


FIG.  223.   Commercial  laying  house  at  Michigan  Agricultural  College 


• 


/8 


DROPPING     BOARD 


co 


MUSLIN   WINDOW 


FIG.  224.    Ground  plan  of  Fig.  223,  showing  portion  of  roosts,  nests, 
and  feed  box 


co 


£ 


J 


^ 

S 

\ 

1 

1    1 

II 

\ 

t 

1  1 

\ 

JJ 

\ 

—  i  1  A 

-4_5.__,    |T 

$ 

«v 

MUSLIN 

WINDOW 

^ 

J 

10                                 i 

*« 
-. 

,, 

i 

8V 

10" 

K 

1 

1 

x—  > 

\ 

** 

'5 

J± 

Qi] 

1 

i 

'* 

/ 

J 

FIG.  225.    Elevation  of  one  section  of  front  of  Fig.  223 


FIG.  226.   Cross  section  of  Fig.  223.    (Photograph  and  drawings  from  Michigan 
Agricultural  College) 


147 


FIG.  227.    Concrete  foundation  and  floor 


FIG.  228.    The  frame 


FIG.  229.    The  house  closed  in  and  covered 

STAGES    IN    CONSTRUCTION    OF    A    LONG    POULTRY    HOUSE 
(Photographs  from  Massachusetts  Agricultural  College) 


148 


I 


FIG.  230.    Fattening  and  killing  house  at  Macdonald  College.    (Photograph  from 

the  college) 


FIG.  231.    Fattening  and  killing  house  at  Maine  Agricultural  College.    (Photo- 
graph from  the  college) 


TIG.  232.    Brooder  house  at  Connecticut  Agricultural  College.    (Photograph 
from  the  college) 

FATTENING    AND    KILLING    HOUSES    AND    BROODER    HOUSE 


149 


FIG.  233.    Small  fattening  houses  at  Iowa  Agricultural  College.    Note  thorough 

ventilation 


FIG.  234.    Interior  of  a  house  in  Fig.  233.    (Photographs  from  Iowa  Agricultural 

College) 

SPECIAL    FATTENING    HOUSES 

150 


FIG.  235.    Interior  of  brooder  house  with  wide  walk  and  pens  on  one  side 


FIG.  236.    Brooder  house  with  narrow  walk  in  middle  and  pens  on  both  sides 
(Photograph  from  Pittsfield  Farm) 

LONG    BROODER-HOUSE    INTERIORS 


FIG.  237.    Long  brooder  house 


FIG.  238.    Cold  house  for  weaned  winter  chicks 


FIG.  239.    Rear  of  Fig.  238 

BROODER    HOUSES    ON    PLANT    OF    E.    O.    DAMON,    HANOVER 

MASSACHUSETTS 

152 


COOPS  AND  BUILDINGS  FOR  POULTRY 


153 


Cockerel  house.  Figs.  240-243  show  the  exterior  and  parts  of  the  interior  of 
the  large  cockerel  house  at  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts. 
The  house  has  an  alley  through  the  middle  with  small  pens  on  the  ground  in 
front  of  the  walk  and  two  rows  of  coops  for  single  birds  at  the  other  side  of  the 
walk.  It  has  a  monitor-top  roof  to  give  light  to  the  coops  back  of  the  walk  and 
for  better  ventilation.  The  pens  in  front  of  the  walk  connect  with  the  outside 
yards.  A  house  of  this  kind  is  almost  indispensable  on  a  plant  which  sells  many 


FIG.  240.    Exterior  view  showing  yards.    (Photograph  from  Grove  Hill  Poultry 

Yards) 


FIG.  241.   Water  pan 


FIG.  242.   Passage 


FIG.  243.    Front  of  coop 


high-class  breeding  and  exhibition  fowls.  The  floor  pens  may  be  used  in  the 
breeding  season  for  small  matings.  The  only  fault  found  in  this  house  after 
years  of  use  is  that  the  lower  coops  in  the  rear  of  the  walk  are  not  sufficiently 
lighted.  This  could  be  corrected  by  making  the  passage  wider  (either  by 
increasing  the  width  of  the  house  or  decreasing  the  width  of  the  pens), 
or  by  reducing  the  pitch  of  the  front  roof  and  enlarging  the  windows  in 
the  wall  above  it,  or  by  slight  changes  in  all  these  respects.  Some  cockerel 
houses  have  at  one  end  or  in  the  center  a  room  the  width  of  the  building,  to 
which  the  birds  are  taken  for  washing  and  special  fitting. 


154 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Poultry  houses  on  hillsides.  While  a  slight  slope  is  an  advantage  in  a  site  for 
a  poultry  house,  too  much  slope  is  troublesome.  Fig.  244  shows  a  poultry  house 
on  a  steep  slope,  with  a  high  front  wall  and  the  area  on  which  the  building 


FIG.  244.   House  on  side 
hill ;  yards  in  front 


FIG.  245.  House  on  side 
hill  (  yards  in  rear 


FIG.  246.  Two-story  house 
on  side  hill 


stands  rilled  in.  The  walk  in  this  house  is  inside,  at  the  rear.  Fig.  245  shows 
a  similar  plan  of  leveling  the  floor,  but  with  raised  walk  outside  in  front. 
Fig.  246  shows  how  an  experienced  poultryman  planned  his  hillside  house  to 
make  a  two-story  poultry  house  and  give  the  fowls  on  both  floors  direct  access 
to  the  ground  outside. 


CHAPTER  X 
POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 

In  discussing  poultry  houses  the  position  of  the  roosts  was  con- 
sidered with  reference  to  ventilation  and  the  comfort  of  the  birds  ; 
the  availability  of  the  earth  floor  for  dusting  was  mentioned,  and 
a  few  other  like  points  came  up  incidentally.  With  such  exceptions 
the  treatment  of  coops  and  buildings  for  poultry  considered  only 
the  structure  as  a  shell,  —  a  shelter  from  the  elements  for  the  birds 
and  for  the  apparatus  that  it  houses.  In  this  chapter  the  various 
fixtures,  apparatus,  and  appliances  used  by  poultry  keepers  are  con- 
sidered with  reference  to  their  adjustments  to  the  birds  and  to  their 
adaptation  to  methods  of  work.  Special  attention  is  given  to  those 
things  which  poultry  keepers  may  construct  for  themselves.1  In 
general,  simple  appliances  of  home  make  are  as  good  as  any  and 
are  much  less  expensive  than  most  articles  sold  for  the  same 
purpose.  Usually  it  is  advisable  to  buy  such  elaborate  appliances 
as  incubators  and  brooders,  though  persons  with  special  aptitude 
for  and  skill  in  such  work  often  make  their  own  in  whole  or  in 

1  In  every  kind  of  article  that  poultrymen  use,  and  for  every  operation  that 
they  have  to  perform,  special  apparatus,  utensils,  tools,  etc.  are  offered  for  sale. 
Many  of  these  have  been  patented.  In  many  other  cases  designers  who  regard 
themselves  as  inventors  sell  copyrighted  drawings  and  instructions  for  making 
apparatus,  appliances,  and  houses,  with  "  permits  "  to  the  purchaser  to  manu- 
facture for  his  own  use.  Very  few  patents  on  this  class  of  articles  hold  when 
contested.  Even  in  incubators  and  brooders  a  good  feature  introduced  by  one 
manufacturer  is  immediately  imitated  with  impunity  by  as  many  other  manu- 
facturers as  can  see  advantage  to  themselves  in  using  it.  Copyrights  on  plans 
and  instructions  cover  only  their  exact  contents  and  protect  the  publisher  only 
from  the  use  of  his  work  by  other  publishers.  The  "  permits  "  given  with  them 
have  no  force.  Any  one  into  whose  hands  such  instructions  come  may  use  the 
designs  as  they  are,  or  with  such  modifications  as  he  chooses.  None  of  the  de- 
vices exploited  in  this  way,  however,  is  of  such  exclusive  merit  that  it  is  worth 
while  to  consider  it  in  preference  to  others  in  which  no  one  claims  proprietary 
rights.  Good  designs  for  all  kinds  of  articles  of  this  class  may  be  found  in 
experiment-station  bulletins  and  in  the  poultry  and  agricultural  press.  As  a  rule, 
the  simplest  contrivance  that  will  answer  any  purpose  is  the  most  economical 
and,  all  things  considered,  the  most  satisfactory. 

155 


156 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  247.    Interior  of  compartment 

house.     (Photograph    from    Henry 

Van  Ureser) 


part.  Especially  is  this  true  of  brooders.  Some  manufacturers 
make  a  specialty  of  supplying  lamps  and  other  brooder  parts  to 
those  who  build  their  own  brooders. 

Roosts.    Perches  are  required  for  all  kinds  of  poultry  but  water- 
fowl and  ostriches.    Some  breeders  of  heavy  Asiatic  fowls  dispense 

with  roosts  and  bed  their  fowls 
on  the  floor,  but  this  practice  is 
not  to  be  commended.  It  came 
into  use  as  a  result  of  the  devel- 
opment of  a  type  of  fowl  lacking 
in  vitality  and  in  strength  pro- 
portionate to  its  size  and  weight, 
and  unable  to  fly  even  to  a  low 
roost  or  to  balance  itself  on  it. 
Not  only  is  it  the  natural  habit 
of  fowls,  turkeys,  etc.  to  roost 
at  a  distance  from  the  ground, 
but  their  conformation  and  feathering  are  such  that  if  their 
droppings  are  at  all  soft,  the  feathers  below  the  vent  become  very 
badly  soiled  by  voidings  made  when  the  birds  are  sitting  on  the 
ground  or  on  a  floor,  while  if  the  birds  were  on  a  perch,  the  soiling 
would  be  slight.  Waterfowl  which  make  voidings  that  are  nor- 
mally semifluid  are  so  formed 
that  the  feathers  are  soiled  little 
if  at  all  by  the  passage  of  the 
excrement. 

The  amount  of  roost  room 
required  depends  on  the  size  of 
the  birds.  An  allowance  of  7 
inches  for  each  adult  Leghorn, 

9  inches  for  a  Plymouth  Rock, 

10  inches  for  a  Brahma  or  a 
Cochin,  and  similar  allowances 

for  birds  corresponding  to  these  in  size  gives  ample  room.  Fowls 
of  these  classes  sitting  close  on  the  roost  do  not  occupy  so  much 
space  as  this.  The  extra  allowance  of  room  gives  abundant  space 
for  the  birds  to  get  up  and  down  without  crowding  or  knocking 
one  another  from  the  roost. 


FIG.  248.    Roosts  and  roost  platform 
in  long  house  without  partitions 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 

Material  and  form.  Roosts  are  usually  made  of  2  x  3  or  2  x  4 
inch  scantling  placed  with  a  wide  surface  up.  Occasionally  roosts 
are  used  with  the  upper  surface  as  narrow  as  two  inches.1  The 
upper  surface  is  sometimes  rounded,  the  idea  being  to  give  it  the 
conformation  of  the  branch  of  a  tree.  There  is  no  discernible  ad- 
vantage to  the  birds  in  this.  The  chief  gain  in  smoothing  the 
scantling  used  for  roosts  is  that  rough  places  in  undressed  lumber 
afford  resting  places  for  red  mites,  and  planing  removes  these.  The 
advantage  of  this,  however,  is  not  as  great  as  it  appears  ;  for  if  the 
mites  are  present,  it  is  much  easier  to  destroy  them  on  the  roosts 
than  about  their  supports  and  in  adjoining  crevices. 

Supports.  When  no  droppings  boards  are  used,  roosts  are  usually 
cut  the  exact  length  of  the  space  that  they  occupy,  and  supported 
at  the  ends  by  strips  screwed  or  nailed  to  the  wall.  Roosts  without 
droppings  boards  are  placed  from  18  inches  to  3  feet  from  the 
floor  (usually  from  2  to  2\  feet)  and  all  on  the  same  level.  Except 
for  the  very  light  breeds  it  is  not  advisable  to  place  them  higher, 
even  if  the  height  of  the  house  admits  of  doing  so.  For  guineas, 
pheasants,  turkeys,  and  peafowl  kept  under  cover,  the  roosts  may 
be  placed  higher.  All  of  these  birds  prefer  the  open,  but  some 
suppose  that  they  are  better  satisfied  indoors  when  roosts  are  4 
or  5  feet  from  the  floor.  In  fixing  the  height  of  the  roost  from 
the  floor  the  effect  on  the  bird  oi  jumping  or  falling  from  the  roost 
needs  consideration  rather  than  the  ability  of  the  bird  to  fly  up  to 
it.  Very  few  birds  are  injured  by  their  own  efforts  to  fly  to  a  roost 
too  high  for  them.  Many  are  injured,  and  all  are  liable  to  injury, 
from  jumping  from  roosts,  or  falling  from  them  when  crowded  off 

1  The  theory  of  the  advocates  of  narrow  roosts  is  that  the  narrow  roost  fits  the 
foot  of  the  bird  better  than  the  wide  one,  and  allows  the  claws  to  grasp  the  roost, 
as  is  natural  when  the  bird  sits  on  a  perch.  This  adaptation  of  the  perch  to  the 
foot  is  plainly  more  characteristic  of  birds  of  the  air  than  of  land  birds.  Water- 
fowl, with  few  exceptions,  do  not  perch.  It  cannot  be  observed  that  domestic 
birds  which  perch  prefer  narrow  to  wide,  or  rounded  to  flat,  perches,  or  that  there 
is  any  disadvantage  in  the  use  of  wide  roosts.  On  the  contrary,  young  land  birds 
usually  begin  to  roost  on  perches  relatively  wider  than  the  widest  ever  used  for 
adult  fowls.  If  fowls  are  slow  about  beginning  to  roost,  one  of  the  common 
methods  of  teaching  them  is  to  put  a  wide  board  (a  platform  for  them)  a  few 
inches  above  the  floor  and  close  to  the  wall,  and,  when  they  have  accustomed 
themselves  to  sleep  on  this,  to  substitute  first  a  roost  six  or  eight  inches  wide, 
and  then  one  of  regulation  width. 


158 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


by  their  companions.  For  roosts  of  scantling,  as  described  above, 
up  to  8  feet  long,  no  intermediate  supports  are  needed.  For 
longer  roosts  supports  at  intervals  of  5  to  8  feet,  according  to 
the  length  of  the  roost,  must  be  provided.  The  intermediate  support 
is  usually  a  strip  of  furring  placed  under  the  roosts  and  at  right 
angles  to  them,  with  one  end  attached  to  the  wall  back  of  them  and 
the  other  to  a  similar  strip  or  a  wire  suspended  from  the  roof.  By 
attaching  the  support  to  the  wall  and  roof  the  floor  space  is  kept 
clear.  When  droppings  boards  are  used  below  short  roosts,  the 
roost  may  be  supported  independently.  When  long  roosts  have 


FIG.  249.    Interior  of  compartment  in  long  house  of  Maine  Experiment  Station 
(Photograph  from  the  station) 

droppings  boards  under  them,  intermediate  supports  (and  some- 
times all  supports)  may  rest  on  the  droppings  boards.  Various  styles 
of  support  are  used,  sonjfe  of  wood,  others  of  iron.  As  these  supports 
interfere  more  or  less  with  the  work  of  removing  the  droppings, 
many  poultry  keepers  prefer  to  attach  intermediate  roost  supports 
to  wall  and  roof,  as  when  no  droppings  boards  are  used. 

Droppings  boards.  Droppings  boards  seem  to  have  been  adopted 
first  for  the  easy  collection  of  hen  manure  free  from  other  matter, 
at  a  time  when  it  could  be  profitably  sold  to  tanneries.  The  drop- 
pings board  is  a  platform  under  the  roosts,  of  such  width  that  all 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS  159 

droppings  voided  while  the  fowls  are  at  roost  fall  on  it.  It  is  some- 
times built  into  the  house  and  sometimes  rests  on  strips  nailed  to 
the  wall  at  each  end  ;  more  rarely  the  droppings  board,  with  roosts 
attached,  rests  on  legs  like  a  bench  or  table.  The  platform  is 
raised  far  enough  above  the  floor  to  let  the  fowls  get  under  it. 
The  space  between  the  platform  and  the  roosts  is  about  eight  or 
ten  inches.  At  one  time  the  droppings  board  was  considered  in- 
dispensable in  a  properly  kept  poultry  house.  It  was  not  used  by 
the  farmers  who  developed  the  colony  system  in  Rhode  Island, 
and  it  was  rarely  used,  as  intended,  by  commercial  poultry  keepers 
whose  business  was  on  a  paying  basis.  Unless  it  is  kept  clean  by 
removal  of  the  droppings  every  two  or  three  days,  conditions  in 
the  poultry  house  are  likely  to  be  much  better  without  it.  On  the 
whole,  only  about  half  the  droppings  are  kept  off  the  floor  by  its 
use.  When  kept  clean,  droppings  boards  add  enormously  to  the 
work  of  caring  for  poultry,1  without  contributing  any  measurable 
benefit. 

Roosting  closets.  As  the  roosts  are  usually  placed,  the  space 
that  they  occupy  may  be  partitioned  from  the  rest  of  the  room 
with  very  little  expense.  If  they  extend  along  one  side,  from  wall 
to  wall,  a  partition  of  boards  brought  part  way  down,  with  a  drop 
curtain  the  rest  of  the  way  when  desired,  gives  the  same  condi- 
tions as  if  the  fowls  were  in  a  house  similarly  arranged  and  shel- 
tered. When  droppings  boards  are  used,  the  roosting  space,  if 
inclosed,  gives  relatively  more  crowded  conditions.  If  the  roosts 
extend  but  part  of  the  length  of  a  side  of  the  house,  a  roosting 
closet  may  be  made  by  boarding  up  one  or  both  ends  of  the 
roosting  space  and  making  the  front  of  boards,  or  boards  and 
curtain.  This  closet  arrangement  may  be  a  decided  advantage  for 
a  few  birds  kept  in  a  large  room,  or  for  tender  birds,  or  in  extreme 
cold  weather.  It  should,  however,  be  used  with  care.  Except  in 
extreme  cold  snaps,  hardy  fowls  in  a  well-stocked  house  will  usually 

1  One  winter,  before  littering  the  floors  of  the  open  houses  that  I  use,  I  took 
the  droppings  from  the  floors  under  the  roosts  for  a  number  of  days,  to  get  the 
average  time  required  to  remove  the  droppings  daily.  Then  the  floors  were  littered 
with  leaves,  and  the  droppings  were  removed  from  the  floor  under  the  roosts  only 
when  they  gave  an  odor,  —  three  times  in  the  course  of  the  winter.  The  actual 
time  taken  was  three  hours  and  a  half ;  the  time  required  to  remove  the  drop- 
pings daily  for  the  same  period  was  thirty-four  hours. 


i6o 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


do  as  well  if  their  roosting  space  is  open  and  provided  with  cur- 
tains for  emergency  use. 

Nests.  Boxes  and  other  receptacles  which  serve  the  purpose 
are  used  to  keep  eggs  safe  and  clean.  The  birds  often  prefer  to 
lay  in  a  corner  on  the  floor,  and  some  will  persist  in  doing  this 
though  as  attractive  a  nest  as  the  keeper  can  design  is  placed 
wh.ere  they  had  made  their  nest.  Ducks  are  most  indifferent  about 
the  matter  of  nests,  dropping  their  eggs  anywhere.  Most  hens  go 
readily  to  the  nests  provided  for  them,  and  though  they  may  have 
a  choice  among  several  nests,  will  take  the  next  nest  if  the  chosen 
nest  is  occupied  and  they  cannot  dislodge  the  occupant.  In  the 

other  kinds  of  poultry  the  gen- 
eral habit  is  for  each  female  to 
make  or  choose  her  own  nest 
and  keep  others  from  it.  These 
birds,  as  a  rule,  seek  out  secluded 
spots  in  which  to  lay,  and  often 
go  to  a  distance  from  the  home- 
stead. Even  when  at  liberty, 
hens  usually  lay  in  the  house 
that  they  roost  in,  if  suitable  pro- 
vision is  made  for  them,  or  if 
they  can  find  a  place  there  that 
suits  them. 

Dealing  with  each  kind  according  to  habit,  the  poultry  keeper  can 
consider  his  own  convenience  and  requirements  in  making  and 
placing  nests  for  hens  and,  in  less  degree,  for  ducks,  while  with 
other  birds  he  succeeds  best  if  he  gives  the  nests  such  protection  as 
he  can  where  the  birds  make  them,  or  places  boxes,  barrels,  or 
coops  singly  where  they  may  attract  a  bird  about  to  lay.  The  nests 
for  ducks  are  usually  made  on  the  floor  in  the  corners  or  at  the 
sides  of  the  pen  by  inclosing  a  space,  or  spaces,  of  suitable  size, 
with"  a  low  strip  in  front  and  higher  divisions  between  the  nests. 

Nest  boxes  for  fowls  are  made  in  great  variety.  The  minimum 
requirement  for  a  single  nest  is  a  frame  about  1 2  inches  square  and 
from  12  to  14  inches  high,  open  on  one  side,  except  for  a  strip 
about  4  inches  wide  at  the  bottom,  with  or  without  top  and  bottom. 
If  the  nest  is  to  be  placed  on  the  ground,  it  does  not  need  a  bottom 


FIG.  250.    Skeleton  triple  nest  box 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 


FIG.  251.   Nests  under  roost  platform, 
entered  from  front 


and  may  be  used  without  a  top.  If  it  is  to  be  attached  to  the  wall 
or  placed  under  the  droppings  board,  it  needs  a  bottom  but  may  be 
used  with  or  without  a  top.  Such 
a  nest  as  this,  sometimes  slightly 
modified  in  form,  or  enlarged  for 
very  large  hens,  is  the  common 
unit  in  series  of  nests  for  both 
laying  and  sitting  hens,  and  is 
the  basis  of  most  trap  nests,  the 
trap  adjustments  being  attached 
to  it  directly  or  to  an  extension 
of  it  adapted  to  them.  Wherever 
more  than  one  nest  is  needed 
in  a  pen,  the  ordinary  nests  are 
usually  made  double,  triple,  or 
quadruple,  —  rarely  more  than  four  in  a  section,  because  of  the 
increased  difficulty  of  handling  them.  All  nests  should  be  mov- 
able. It  is  a  serious  mistake  to  build  them  into  the  house  so 
that  they  are  difficult  to  clean  and  treat  for  lice,  and  cannot  be 
taken  out  and  aired. 

The  position  of  nests  in  the  house  may 
be  decided  according  to  other  fixtures  and 
the  general  plan,  or  according  to  the  con- 
venience of  the  keeper  or  the  inclinations 
and  habits  of  the  hens  in  the  flock,  —  points 
which  it  is  sometimes  necessary  to  consider, 
as  when  hens  contract  the  vice  of  egg  eat- 
ing. Nests  for  laying  hens  are  rarely  placed 
on  the  floor  (except  when  hens  persist  in 
laying  their  eggs  there),  because  in  this 
position  they  reduce  available  floor  space ; 
but  when  tiers  of  nests  are  used,  they  must 
begin  at  the  floor,  in  order  to  get  in  the  de- 
sired number  of  nests  and  have  the  higher 
tiers  accessible.  They  may  be  attached 
to  the  wall  and  fully  exposed  to  the  light,  or  arranged  to  face  the 
wall  (making  a  partially  dark  nest),  or  placed  under  the  droppings 
board  with  entrance  from  the  rear  and  with  a  hinged  cover  in  front, 


FIG.  252.  Nests  under 
roost  platform,  entered 
from  the  rear.  Long  sec- 
tional nest  box  on  cas- 
ters, drawn  out  to  collect 
the  eggs 


162 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  253.    Nest  with  side  and  top  removed 
(trap  open) 


FIG.  254.    Nest  with  side  and  top  removed 
(trap  closed) 


FIG.  255.   View  of  nest  from  top  (top  removed) 

THE    MAINE    EXPERIMENT    STATION 
TRAP    NEST 

(Photographs  from  Maine  Experiment  Station) 


which  simple  arrange- 
ment admits  of  using 
the  same  nests  (with 
front  closed)  as  dark 
nests  and  (with  front 
open)  as  light  nests. 

Material.  Most  nest 
boxes  are  constructed 
of  wood.  Many  poultry 
keepers  convert  second- 
hand boxes  and  crates 
of  suitable  size  into 
nest  boxes,  or  make 
them  of  old  material 
which  can  be  cut  to  the 
required  dimensions. 
When  such  close  econ- 
omy is  necessary,  this 
is  not  objectionable, 
but  on  the  whole  it 
will  be  found  more 
satisfactory  if  all  nests 
used  for  one  purpose 
and  for  birds  of  the 
same  kind  are  of  the 
same  pattern,  --of 
new  seven-eighths-inch 
boards,  surfaced  on 
both  sides  and  planed 
on  the  edges,  to  give 
smooth  surfaces  every- 
where and  close-fitting 
joints. 

Trap  nests  are  used 
to  enable  the  poultry 
keeper  to  keep  indi- 
vidual laying  records 
and  the  full  pedigrees 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 


I63 


of  stock,  without  penning  separately  each  hen  under  observation. 
In  general  their  use  is  limited  to  experimental  work,  in  which  they 
are  indispensable,  and  to  special  breeding  operations.  They  cannot 
be  used  to  advantage  when  attendants  are  not  at 'hand  to  release 
the  hens  at  frequent  intervals  during  the  day,  nor  is  it  practicable 
to  use  them  for  ordinary  laying  and  breeding  stock. 


FIG.  2560.    Cornell  trap  nests,  under 
roost  platform  l 


FIG.  256^.    Cornell  trap  nests,  attached 
to  wall l 


Etaow  CUPBOARD  C/ITCH 


_ 

•« 

IT        "*- 


File  to  acute,  anyk- 

* 


There  are  scores  of  different  kinds  of  trap  nests  made.  In  all 
the  entrance  is  so  constructed  that  as  the  hen  enters  she  springs 
the  catch  which  holds  the  door  open,  and  it  closes  after  her  in  such  a 
manner  that  she  cannot  leave  the  nest  until  released  by  an  attendant. 
Some  of  these  nests  are  very  simple  in  construction  ;  others  are  more 
complicated.  Each  designer  claims  greater 
accuracy  for  his  nest  than  is  found  in  others, 
but  in  their  ordinary  use  absolute  accuracy 
is  not  a  vital  point.  In  general,  accuracy 
depends  somewhat  on  the  trap  being  kept 
clear  of  obstructions,  the  nesting  material 
being  the  chief  cause  of  trouble. 

Number  of  nests  required.    Of  common 
nests  one  for  every  four  to  six  hens  is  usually 

sufficient.  When  trap  nests  are  used,  these  proportions  will  be  satis- 
factory if  the  hens  are  removed  from  the  nests  at  frequent  intervals. 

Feed  troughs.  Troughs  are  used  principally  for  wet  (or  moist) 
mashes,  but  also  occasionally  for  dry  ground  grains  when  fed  in 
limited  quantities.  The  pattern  most  used  is  a  flat-bottomed,  shallow 
trough.  V-shaped  troughs  are  also  common.  These  plain  troughs 

1  Photographs  from  New  York  State  Agricultural  College  at  Cornell  University. 


FIG.  257.    Catch  used  on 
Cornell  trap  nest 


164 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


cost  very  little  and  are,  on  the  whole,  more  satisfactory  than  the 
more  elaborate  ones  designed  to  make  it  impossible  for  the  birds  to 
get  their  feet  into  the  food.  They&z  /  troughs  are  made  with  bottoms 
of  |-inch  or  |-inch  boards  (surfaced  on  one  side)  and  with  sides 
of  furring  or  lath,  according  to  the  size  of  the  trough  and  of  the 
birds  which  are  to  feed  from  it.  For  sizes  up  to  6  inches  wide  and 
about  2  feet  long,  |-inch  stuff  with  edges  of  lath  will  do.  For  larger 
troughs  it  is  better  to  use  J-inch  bottoms,  though  if  they  are  for  young 
birds,  the  sides  may  be  of  lath.  A  favorite  style  of  flat-bottomed 
trough  is  made  by  nailing  the  sides  to  the  bottom  so  that  they  pro- 
ject equally  on  both  sides  of  the  board,  making  a  reversible  trough. 


FIG.  258.    Trap  nest  used  at  North 

Carolina  Experiment  Station  (one 

trap  set) l 


FIG.  259.    Same  as  Fig.  258,  one 

nest  drawn  out  and  opened  at  top 

to  remove  egg1 


The  advantage  of  this  is  that,  by  simply  turning  it  over,  the  trough 
is  emptied  of  the  litter  or  dirt  which  accumulates  in  it  between 
feedings,  while  a  single  trough  must  be  turned  over  and  back. 

Very  small  V-shaped  troughs  may  be  made  of  |-inch  boards,  but 
in  general  it  is  better  to  make  them  of  J-inch  stuff.  For  very  large 
troughs,  used  in  goose  fattening,  this  form  is  usually  preferred. 

For  regular  feeding,  most  poultry  keepers  prefer  short  troughs 
from  3  to  4  feet  long  and  from  6  to  8  inches  wide.  A  short,  wide 
trough  will  accommodate  more  birds  than  a  narrower  and  longer 
one  with  the  same  superficial  area,  and  it  is  easier  to  feed  in 
them  (with  birds  crowding  about)  without  scattering  food  on  the 
ground.2  A  trough  12  inches  wide  by  1 6  or  1 8  inches  long  makes 

1  Photographs  from  North  Carolina  Experiment  Station. 

2  This  is  an  important  point  when  the  feed  trough  stands  on  the  poultry-house 
floor  or  on  bare  or  soiled  ground.    On  clean  sod  no  troughs  are  needed  for  moist 
mash;   it  may  be  fed  on  the  ground.    Some  colony  poultry  farmers  throw  the 
mash  from  the  wagon  with  a  shovel  as  they  drive  from  house  to  house. 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 


a  very  convenient  size  for  use  in  small  flocks.  One  such  trough 
should  be  allowed  for  each  eight  to  twelve  hens  or  ducks.  On  some 
of  the  duck  farms,  where  feeding  and  watering  is  done  in  the  yards, 
from  a  track,  the  troughs  are  made  1 8  to  20  inches  wide  and  5  or 
6  feet  long,  and  the  feed  is  thrown  into  them  from  the  car.  When 
hopper  feeding  was  less  general,  many  poultrymen  made  troughs 
with  high  ends  and  a  board  on  edge  between,  to  prevent  birds 
getting  into  the  trough.  For  very  small  chicks  some  poultry 
keepers  use  shallow  pans  of  galvanized  iron,  about  3  inches  wide 
and  8  inches  long,  with  sides  |-inch  high. 

Feed  hoppers.  Many  styles  of  hoppers  have  been  designed,  to 
hold  a  store  of  food  and  feed  it  down  into  an  attached  box  as  fast 
as  the  birds  consume  it.  They  are  made  in 
all  sizes,  from  the  small  hopper,  with  a 
capacity  of  a  few  quarts,  to  the  large  hopper, 
with  a  capacity  of  one  hundred  pounds  or 
more.  They  are  used  for  both  whole  and 
cracked  grains,  and  for  dry  ground  feeds. 
Small  hoppers  are  also  used  for  shell,  char- 
coal, etc.  The  movement  of  the  grain  from 
the  hopper  to  the  feeding  box  beneath  is 
designed  to  be  automatic,  the  weight  of  the 
material  in  the  hopper  carrying  it  down 
through  the  opening  at  the  bottom  as  food 
is  removed  from  the  box.  Most  hoppers 
work  well  except  for  ground  grains,  which  always  clog  more  or 
less.  To  overcome  this  a  patent  feeder  holds  all  food  in  the 
food  box,  with  a  coarse  wire  screen  so  suspended  that  it  rests 
on  the  ground  grain,  holding  it  piled  high  in  the  box,  opening 
a  larger  surface  to  the  birds,  and  making  the  food  accessible 
as  long  as  any  remains.  The  other  point  of  trouble  in  hopper 
feeders  is  the  waste,  through  the  birds  pulling  stuff  out  of  the 
box.  To  overcome  this  an  inturned  edge,  or  lip,  is  put  on  the 
feeding  box.  ' 

The  prevention  of  waste  from  hopper  feeders  is  not,  however, 
simply  a  question  of  preventing  the  birds  from  scattering  the  con- 
tents of  the  box.  The  primary  question  is  the  quality  of  the  food. 
There  is  nothing  gained  by  retaining  in  the  box  the  stuff  that  the 


FIG.  260.  Feed  hopper  in 
colony  house 


I 66  POULTRY  CULTURE 

birds  reject.  Hopper  feeders  are  usually  made  of  wood,  but  many 
of  the  smaller  sizes  manufactured  for  sale  are  of  galvanized  iron. 
Drinking  vessels.  There  are  two  kinds  of  drinking  vessels:  open 
vessels  (as  pails,  pots,  pans,  and  troughs)  and  closed  vessels,  of  the 
fountain  type.  The  open  vessels  are  more  generally  used.  If 
placed  where  they  get  the  sun  and  air,  six-quart  wooden  pails  are 
very  satisfactory  for  adult  fowls.  For  indoor  use  when  the  sun 
shines  on  the  drinking  vessel  for  only  a  short  time  each  day,  it  is 
better  to  use  vessels  of  stoneware,  or  iron  vessels  with  porcelain 
lining.  The  latter  cost  most,  but  in  ordinary  use  are  almost  in- 
destructible, will  last  a  lifetime,  and  are  the  easiest  of  all  to  keep 
clean.  For  young  chickens  and  ducklings 
with  hens,  any  shallow  dish  or  pan  will 
answer.  Earthen  flowerpot  saucers  are 
inexpensive  and,  if  not  exposed  to  frost 
when  wet,  will  last  many  seasons.  For 
ducks  and  the  larger  kinds  of  poultry, 
full-sized  wooden  pails  or  small  tubs  or 
troughs  are  used.  For  ducks  and  geese 
that  are  given  water  only  for  drinking  pur- 
poses, the  drinking  vessel  should  be  too 

heavy  to  be  easily  upset,  or  should  be  se- 
FIG.  261.   Water  pails  on 

shelves  cured.    On    the  whole,   V-shaped   troughs 

are  as  satisfactory  as  any  for  waterfowl. 

Drinking  fountains  are  made  on  the  same  principle  as  hopper 
feeders,  and  are  mostly  commercial  products.  The  primitive  form 
is  the  homemade  fountain,  made  of  a  tall  tin  can  inverted  in  a 
shallow  pan  or  dish  of  slightly  greater  circumference,  the  can  hav- 
ing a  few  small  holes  at  such  distance  from  the  open  end  as  is 
required  to  make  the  water  stand  at  the  desired  height  in  the  other 
vessel.  The  commercial  drinking  fountains  are  made  of  earthen- 
ware, stoneware,  galvanized  iron,  or  glass.  The  advantage  of  using 
drinking  vessels  of  the  fountain  type  depends  very  much  on  cir- 
cumstances. In  general,  open  vessels  are  preferred;  because  they 
are  more  quickly  filled  and  easier  to  keep  clean.  The  extra  labor 
of  taking  care  of  a  large  number  of  drinking  fountains  will  usually 
more  than  offset  what  is  gained  in  reducing  the  number  of  water- 
ings. The  best  way  for  the  individual  poultry  keeper  to  decide 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS  167 

points  of  this  kind  is  to  try  out  a  special  appliance  on  a  small 
scale  and  in  comparison  with  the  best  arrangement  that  he  can 
make  without  it. 

Dusting  boxes.  Dust  baths  are  required  when  poultry  are  con- 
fined on  floors  of  wood  or  cement.  They  may  be  built  into  one 
corner,  in  which  case  all  that  is  necessary  to  make  the  dusting  place 


FIG.  262.    Fully  equipped  feed,  store,  and  conditioning  house.    (Photograph 
from  Gardner  and  Dunning) 

is  two  boards  for  the  two  outer  sides,  the  walls  forming  the  other 
sides  and  the  floor  the  bottom.  This  is  probably  the  best  arrange- 
ment in  small  pens.  In  large  pens  it  may  be  more  satisfactory  to 
use  movable  boxes  (about  thirty  inches  square  and  twelve  inches 
high)  with  bottoms,  and  place  two  or  more  in  each  pen. 

Common  tools.  In  the  work  of  caring  for  poultry  houses  and 
yards  the  ordinary  garden  and  stable  tools  (rakes,  hoes,  shovels, 
spades,  forks,  brooms,  wheelbarrows,  pails,  scoops,  etc.)  all  have 


1 68  POULTRY  CULTURE 

their  places,  the  kind  and  size  used  being  adapted  to  the  work  to 
be  done.  In  the  mixing  and  cooking  of  feed,  also,  appliances 
used  in  work  with  other  kinds  of  stock  are  adapted  to  work  with 
poultry.  There  are,  however,  a  number  of  appliances  and  tools  de- 
signed especially  for  the  poultryman.  Some  of  these  are  necessary 
in  all  lines  of  work,  some  in  special  lines,  and  some  are  useful  only 
in  certain  conditions.  It  is  not  necessary  to  mention  and  describe 
them  all.  Following  is  a  list  of  the  more  important  appliances,  with 
brief  statements  concerning  the  use  of  each.  These  and  other 
appliances  are  catalogued  by  general  poultry-supply  houses,  or 
advertised  in  poultry  and  agricultural  papers  by  the  manufacturers. 


FIG.  263.    Iron  jacket  and  bricked-up        FIG.  264.    Feed    cooker   and    mixing 
kettles    in    cookhouse    on    farm    of        trough  in  cookroom  at  C.  H.Wyckoff's 
F.  W.  C.  Almy  plant     ' 

Cooking  apparatus.  The  best  cooker  for  poultry  feed  is  a  bricked- 
up  set-kettle.  The  bricks  hold  the  heat  much  longer  than  the  iron 
fire  box  under  the  ordinary  feed  cooker.  The  latter  is  less  expen- 
sive. Either  may  be  used  for  scalding  poultry  or  for  heating  water 
for  any  purpose.  Something  of  this  kind  is  necessary  on  a  poultry 
plant  that  carries  more  than  a  few  dozen  birds. 

Food  mixers.  On  a  large  plant  where  moist  mashes  are  fed 
(as  on  duck  plants  and  goose-fattening  farms)  mixing  by  hand 
becomes  heavy  work.  Bakers'  dough  mixers  have  been  satisfac- 
torily used  by  some  duck  growers.  One  large  duck  farm  uses  a  con- 
crete mixer.  Ordinarily  a  revolving  barrel  or  box  turned  by  hand 
will  answer  for  mixing  dry  mill  stuffs,  and  wet  ground  grains  may 
be  mixed  with  a  shovel  in  kettles  or  in  troughs.  Grains  to  be  fed 
in  hoppers  may  be  mixed  in  revolving  mixers.  For  feeding  by  hand, 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS 


169 


grains  may  be  sufficiently  mixed  by  scooping  alternately  from  the 
different  bins  to  the  pail  in  which  the  food  is  carried. 

Bone  cutters.  The  only  machine  that  will  reduce  fresh  bone  to 
form  suitable  for  poultry  food  is  a  bone  cutter,  which  shaves  the 
bone ;  green  bone  cannot  be  ground.  The  old-style  bone  mill  for  dry 
bones  is  now  rarely  seen.  In  general,  it  does  not  pay  to  use  a  bone 
cutter  unless  it  can  be  run  by  power.  When  power  can  be  secured, 
the  most  common  difficulty  is  to  get  regular  and  sufficient  supplies 
of  bone  at  reasonable  prices,  for  the  supply  is  usually  very  limited. 


FIG.  265.    Homemade  feed  mixer, 
used  by  Henry  D.  Smith 


FIG.  266.   Same  as  Fig.  265.   Hopper 
hung  up  after  filling  barrel 


Hay  cutters.  Every  poultryman  who  has  room  to  grow  his 
own  clover  or  alfalfa,  or  can  purchase  either  (properly  cured) 
from  a  farmer,  should  consider  a  hay  cutter  a  necessity.  Most 
poultry  keepers  pay  too  much  for  this  class  of  food.  One  or  the 
other  of  the  grasses  mentioned  can  be  grown  anywhere.  Enough 
for  several  thousand  fowls  can  be  cut  by  hand  power  in  a 
short  time. 

Root  cutters.  Root  cutters  are  not  often  needed.  It  is  usually 
much  better  to  feed  roots  whole  or  simply  split,  letting  the  poultry 
pick  them  to  pieces  and  eat  them  deliberately. 


FIG.  267.    Dough  cart  used  by  Sisson 

Brothers,     Little    Compton,     Rhode 

Island 


FIG.  268.    Dough  cart,  with  coop  for 

moving  poultry.  P.  H.  Wilbour,  Little 

Compton,  Rhode  Island 


FIG.  269.   Two-wheeled,  covered 
dough  cart 


FIG.  270.    Handy  water  cart, 
P.  R.  Park 


FIG.  271.    Feeding  and  watering  cart, 

used  by  the   Department  of  Poultry 

Husbandry  at  Cornell  University 


FIG.  272.    Same  as  Fig.  271,  with  box 

sides    on.     (Photograph   from    New 

York  State  Agricultural  College) 


CARTS    FOR    POULTRY    WORK 

170 


POULTRY-HOUSE  FITTINGS  171 

Egg  testers.  For  testing  the  fertility  of  eggs,  incubator  manu- 
facturers furnish  a  metal  chimney,  to  be  used  on  the  incubator  lamp. 
While  this  will  serve  the  purpose,  it  is  not  as  good  as  a  homemade 
tester  made  from  a  high,  narrow  box  (a  six-pound  wooden  starch 
box  will  answer  the  purpose).  In  one  side  and  at  such  a  height 
that  it  will  come  directly  opposite  the  flame  of  the  lamp  set  inside, 
cut  a  hole  a  little  smaller  than  the  oval  circumference  of  an  egg ; 
a  hole  a  little  larger  in  circumference  than  the  top  of  the  lamp 
chimney  should  be  cut  in  the  top  of  the  box.  The  box  tester  may 
also  be  used  with  an  incandescent  electric  light,  but  sunlight  is  the 
best  light  for  testing  eggs.  Some  poultrymen  darken  the  incuba- 
tor cellar  and  test  eggs  through  a  suitable  aperture  in  a  shutter 
on  a.  window  facing  the  sun. 

Nest  eggs.  Artificial  eggs  are  supposed  to  be  of  use  in  induc- 
ing hens  to  lay  in  the  nests  containing  them,  but  their  value  for  this 
purpose  is  doubtful.  Hens  sometimes  lay  where  the  nest  eggs  are; 
quite  as  often  they  do  not.  The  china  or  other  nest  egg  is  really 
serviceable  in  nests  of  sitters  moved  to  new  quarters,  before  it 
seems  safe  to  give  them  good  eggs. 

Transportation  on  the  poultry  plant.  On  a  poultry  plant  of  the 
extensive  type  a  horse  and  cart  can  usually  be  used  for  distributing 
food  and  water,  collecting  eggs,  and  moving  coops  from  place  to 
place.  The  wheelbarrow  is  indispensable  on  all  plants.  On  some 
duck  plants  a  great  deal  of  labor  is  saved  by  using  tracks  running 
above  the  fences,  and  in  some  of  the  long  houses  for  fowls  over- 
head tracks  are  arranged  to  carry  a  hanging  car  from  pen  to  pen. 
The  advantage  of  this  inside  track  is  not  as  apparent  as  that  of  the 
outside  track  used  on  the  duck  farms.  On  a  large  plant  a  great  deal 
of  time  and  labor  is  saved  by  having  food  storage  bins  so  distrib- 
uted about  the  plant  that  the  grain  does  not  have  to  be  carried  long 
distances  at  each  feeding. 


CHAPTER  XI 

NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY 

Nutritive  requirements.  Poultry  need  the  food  constituents  used 
by  all  creatures,  but  not  always  in  the  forms  and  proportions  in 
which  they  are  used  by  other  domestic  creatures.  The  composi- 
tion of  the  flesh  of  poultry  does  not  differ  greatly  from  that  of 
domestic  animals  used  as  food.  In  general  it  contains  more  protein 
and  less  fat.1  The  rapid  growth  of  poultry,  however,  demands  a 
larger  proportion  of  concentrated  food  and  relatively  larger  quan- 
tities of  food  than  other  domestic  creatures,  and  in  birds  which 
lay  nearly  all  the  year  round  the  heavy  demand  for  concentrated 
food  is  continuous.  For  both  growth  and  egg  production  mineral 
matter  also  is  required  in  much  larger  proportion  than  in  the  diet 
of  mammals. 

Nutritive  organs.  The  digestive  organs  of  poultry  present  the 
same  general  characteristics  as  those  of  mammals,  varied  in  the 
different  kinds  in  accordance  with  their  feeding  habits  and  diet. 
Briefly,  they  consist  of  a  mouth,  furnished  with  horny  lips  (beak, 
or  bill) ;  a  gullet ;  an  esophagus,  having  an  enlargement  (the  crop) 
in  which  the  food  taken  in  at  the  mouth  is  retained  for  some  time 
and  subjected  to  action  of  the  secretions  of  the  crop ;  a  stomach 
(the  proventriculus),  where  the  food  received  from  the  crop  is 
mixed  with  the  gastric  juice  ;  a  gizzard,  a  muscular  organ  with 
corrugated  inner  surfaces  of  tough,  horny  skin  between  which  the 
food  is  reduced  before  passing  into  the  intestines  ;  large  and  small 
intestines  ;  liver  ;  gall  bladder  ;  pancreas  ;  two  caeca  ;  rectum  ; 
cloaca ;  and  anus,  or  vent.  In  a  study  of  poultry  culture  special 
interest  attaches  to  the  mouth,  crop,  and  gizzard,  to  the  func- 
tions of  these  organs,  and  to  their  relations  to  feeding  theories 
and  practice. 

1  "  Poultry  as  Food,"  FaivnerS  Bulletin  No.  182,  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture,  also  Bulletin  No.  270,  Storrs  Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 

172 


NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY 

In  general,  poultry  use  for  food  larger  proportions  of  expensive 
food  products  than  other  domesticated  creatures,  but  as,  under  suit- 
able conditions,  they  collect  much  of  this  class  of  foods  for  them- 
selves, the  comparative  cost  of  feeding  them  is  not  as  much  greater 
as  the  fact  suggests. 

NOTE.  Some  analogies  between  organs  of  nutrition  of  birds  and  creatures 
below  and  above  them  in  the  scale  of  evolution  are  also  of  peculiar  interest  to 
the  student  of  poultry  culture.  The  most  conspicuous  resemblances  between 
domestic  birds  and  animals  in  respect  to  nutrition  are  commonly  noted  and 
their  importance  is  often  exaggerated.  Thus :  Poultry,  being  omnivorous,  eat 
everything  eaten  by  cattle,  which  are  herbivorous  and  granivorous;  there- 
fore it  has  been  assumed  by  some  students  of  the  science  of  feeding  that  the 
nutritive  rations  worked  out  for  cows  will  apply  to  poultry.1  There  is  a 
double  fallacy  in  this  view.  Cattle  are  principally  herbivorous,  but  use  small 
quantities  of  grain  to  advantage.  Fowls  are  principally  granivorous,  but  eat 
considerable  quantities  of  vegetables.  Were  there  no  other  difference  in  the 
diets  of  fowls  and  cattle,  the  fact  that  cattle  eat  chiefly  of  bulky  foods  and 
lightly  of  concentrated  foods,  while  fowls  subsist  more  largely  (and  may  sub- 
sist for  long  periods  exclusively)  on  concentrated  grain  foods,  would  suggest  a 
necessary  difference  in  feeding  standards.  But  fowls  are  also  carnivorous  and 
insectivorous,  using  large  quantities  of  highly  nutritious  animal  foods.  Such 
differences  suggest  that  the  same  feeding  standards  will  not  serve  for  both 
classes  of  creatures. 

Cattle  and  horses  have  strong  jaws  and  powerful  molar  teeth  for  the  mas- 
tication of  the  forage  and  grain  that  they  consume.  Hence,  by  analogy,  it 
was  assumed  that  birds  eating  grain  must  have  powerful  organs  to  grind  and 
reduce  it  to  form  available  for  nutrition.  Man  and  all  domestic  animals  must 
reduce  food  to  such  consistency  and  form  that  it  will  pass  through  a  gullet 
very  small  in  comparison  with  the  mouth  and  the  size  of  the  creature.  Again, 
by  analogy,  it  was  assumed  that  birds,  so  much  smaller  than  man  and  domes- 
tic animals,  and  having  no  teeth  with  which  to  reduce  their  food  before  swal- 
lowing, must  have  food  especially  selected  or  prepared  to  meet  the  supposed 
requirements  of  creatures  of  their  size  not  provided  with  mechanical  organs 
of  nutrition  such  as  larger  and  stronger  mammals  possessed.  Such  analogies 
have  had  a  marked  influence  on  the  theory  and  practice  of  poultry  feeding. 
The  fundamental  error  was  failure  to  assign  to  birds  their  proper  place  in 
the  animal  kingdom,  and  to  consider  the  resemblances  between  their  nutritive 
organs  and  processes  and  those  of  creatures  lower  down  in  the  scale. 

1  Singular  and  absurd  as  it  seems,  it  is  a  fact  that  the  earliest  investigators  of 
the  science  of  feeding  poultry,  instead  of  analyzing  numbers  of  good  rations  for 
poultry  and  ascertaining  their  average  and  using  that  as  the  standard,  simply 
took  over  the  standards  accepted  for  dairy  cows  and  tried  to  apply  them  in 
poultry  feeding. 


174  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Birds  are  most  closely  akin  to  reptiles,  which  differ  strikingly  from  mam- 
mals in  the  structure  and  use  of  the  organs  for  the  prehension  of  food  and 
also  in  the  provision  made  for  its  final  mastication.  A  cow  may  choke  on  an 
apple;  a  snake  by  extension  of  the  mouth  and  dilation  of  the  gullet  will 
swallow  animals  which,  even  after  constriction  in  its  folds,  have  a  circumfer- 
ence greater  than  the  normal  circumference  of  its  body.  In  this  respect  birds 
occupy  an  intermediate  position.  A  bird  can  usually  swallow  anything  that  it 
can  get  into  its  mouth.  In  the  young  of  aerial  birds  the  mouth  is  conspic- 
uously large.  A  small  chicken  will  swallow  an  insect  apparently  much  too  large 
for  it ;  fowls  often  kill  mice  and  frequently  swallow  young  mice  alive ; l  a  goose 
will  swallow  a  large  apple  core.  No  one  who  closely  observes  the  feeding 
habits  of  poultry  which  have  access  to  foods  of  various  kinds,  in  pieces  much 
larger  than  they  can  conveniently  swallow,  can  fail  to  notice  that,  even  when 
the  bird  has  to  pick  the  article  to  pieces  to  eat  it,  the  last  piece  swallowed  is 
always  much  larger  than  is  commonly  considered  an  appropriate  size  for  mor- 
sels of  its  food.  It  has  been  usual  to  attribute  this  to  gluttony  and  to  the  fear 
of  having  a  choice  morsel  snatched  away,  but  it  is  simply  the  natural  habit 
of  the  bird  to  swallow  the  largest  morsel  adapted  to  its  structure. 

The  crop  of  the  bird  corresponds  to  the  rumen,  or  paunch,  in  ruminant 
quadrupeds,  but  in  the  provision  for  reducing  food,  after  subjection  to  the 
action  of  the  secretions  of  the  crop  and  proventriculus,  a  bird  resembles  the 
orders  below  it  in  the  scale  of  development.  The  food  of  the  bird  is  masti- 
cated, or  triturated,  in  the  gizzard.  Reasoning  from  analogies  observed  between 
birds  and  ruminants,  and  from  the  fact  that  small  particles  of  stone,  glass, 
earthenware,  etc.  were  often  found  in  the  gizzards  of  fowls  in  course  of  prep- 
aration for  the  table,  it  was  long  ago  assumed  that  the  gizzard  itself  was  inad- 
equate for  its  function,  and  that  the  bird  swallowed  these  substances  because 
they  were  required  for  the  mastication  of  its  food.  One  of  the  common  pre- 
cepts of  poultry  culture  is  that  poultry  must  be  constantly  supplied  with 
"  fresh,  sharp  grit "  or  it  cannot  properly  digest  its  food,  and  the  practice  of 
supplying  the  birds  with  the  teeth  that  nature  neglected  to  provide  is  quite 
general. 

In  respect  to  the  gizzard,  as  in  capacity  for  swallowing,  birds  are  more  like 
some  reptiles  and  insects  than  like  the  familiar  animals  with  which  their  nutri- 
tive organs  are  usually  compared.  The  crocodile  has  an  organ  resembling  a 
gizzard,  and  some  naturalists  2  have  said  that,  like  birds,  crocodiles  swallowed 
stones  to  aid  "  the  gastric  mill."  Some  insects  have  gizzards  supplied  with 
tooth-like  processes.  From  these  several  analogies  the  reasonable  presumption 
is  that  the  bird  does  not  require  grit  to  grind  its  natural  food,  and  that,  while 
occasional  eating  of  indigestible  articles  of  this  kind  might  be  called  an  error  in 
selecting  food,  the  regular  consumption  of  such  stuffs  would  indicate  unnatural 
feeding  and  an  abnormal  condition  of  the  digestive  tract  as  a  result.  This 
point  will  be  further  considered  in  a  subsequent  paragraph. 

1  I  have  seen  a  very  large  Brahma  hen  swallow  alive  a  mouse  more  than 
half  grown.  2  James  Orton,  Comparative  Zoology. 


NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY 


175 


Differences  in  beaks  and  crops.  In  the  gallinaceous  birds  the 
upper  mandible  forms  a  stout,  sharp  hook,  and  this  beak  is  a  most 
efficient  tool  for  the  prehension  of  food  and  also  to  supplement 
the  claws  in  uncovering  food  concealed  on  or  near  the  surface  of 
the  ground.  In  waterfowl  the  bill  is  much  larger :  in  the  duck  it 
is  long,  broad  and  flat,  shovel-like,  and  especially  adapted  to  secur- 
ing food  in  water ;  the  bill  of  the  goose  is  less  flattened,  stronger, 
and  the  edges  of  the  upper  mandible  are  more  serrated.  The 
serrations  of  the  mandibles  in  waterfowl  seem  to  serve  a  double 
purpose  :  they  give  a  firmer  hold  on  the  coarse  vegetation  grow- 
ing in  water  and  in  moist  places,  of  which  these  birds  eat  great 
quantities  ;  they  also  serve  as  strainers  to  retain  in  the  mouth 
small  forms  of  animal  life  taken  in  with  water,  which  is  forced 
out  at  the  sides.  The  crops  of  gallinaceous  birds  are  large  and 
will  hold  considerable  quantities  of  food ;  the  crops  of  ducks  and 
geese  are  small. 

Natural  foods  and  feeding  habits  of  poultry.  In  a  study  of  the 
subject  of  feeding,  the  natural  foods  and  feeding  habits  of  poultry 
must  be  considered.  It  is  to  these  natural  diets  that  the  organs  and 
habits  of  the  birds  were  adjusted  in  the  wild  state,  and  though  they 
readily  adapt  themselves  to  different  diets,  there  are  some  features 
of  the  natural  life  and  diet  which  must  be  preserved  in  every  arti- 
ficial method  intended  for  continuous  use.  The  form  in  which  food 
is  taken  is  of  more  importance  in  feeding  practice  than  the  proper 
balancing  of  nutrients  in  the  ration;  for  while  a  badly  balanced  ra- 
tion produces  malnutrition,  its  bad  effects  develop  slowly  and  are 
usually  promptly  remedied  by  a  proper  diet,  but  a  ration  that  is 
unsuitable  in  form  (however  well  balanced  in  its  nutrient  elements) 
if  eaten  by  the  bird  reluctantly  and  in  insufficient  quantities  may 
result  in  malnutrition,  or,  if  eaten  readily,  may  cause  disorders  of 
the  digestive  organs  which  develop  quickly  and  are  not  easily  rem- 
edied. The  form  in  which  food  is  taken  also  has  an  important 
influence  on  exercise  and  the  general  physical  habits  which  affect 
digestion. 

Gallinaceous  domestic  birds1  are  conspicuously  granivorous 
when  compared  with  carnivorous  and  herbivorous  creatures,  but 
under  natural  conditions,  with  opportunity  to  eat  as  much  as  they 

1  Fowls,  turkeys,  guineas,  peafowls,  and  pheasants. 


176  POULTRY  CULTURE 

want  of  the  different  kinds  of  food,  it  is  probable 1  that  they  derive 
about  as  much  of  their  nourishment  from  animal  and  green  foods  as 
from  grains  and  seeds.  The  form  in  which  they  take  foods  differs 
in  nearly  every  case  from  the  form  in  which  it  is  supplied  to  them 
by  a  keeper.  The  grains  and  seeds  that  they  get  in  the  natural 
state  are  mostly  small,  and  a  large  proportion  of  them  are  at  some 
stage  of  germination.  Very  small  grains  and  seeds  are  taken  only 
in  the  absence  of  larger  ones,  but  these  small  seeds,  as  of  grass 
and  many  weeds,  are  eaten  greedily,  blade  (or  leaf),  root,  and  all, 
after  germination.  There  are  few,  if  any,  of  our  common  plants 
and  weeds  that  poultry  will  not  eat  in  the  first  tender  stage,  though 
there  are  many  for  which  they  have  little  appetite  when  they  have 
passed  beyond  that  stage.  They  always  prefer  tender  vegetation, 
and  it  has  often  been  noted  that  their  marked  preference  for  cer- 
tain plants  was  for  the  condition,  not  for  the  kind.  The  animal 
food  secured  under  natural  conditions  consists  principally  of  small 
creatures  (insects,  worms,  etc.)  eaten  whole,  bony  and  fibrous 
parts  being  swallowed  with  the  rest.  Under  these  conditions 
all  poultry  undoubtedly  consume  very  much  larger  quantities  of 
indigestible  material  than  the  poultry  keeper  usually  gives  them, 
but  much  of  this  is  in  such  form  that  it  mechanically  assists  the 
processes  of  digestion,  giving  greater  bulk  to  the  ration  and  prevent- 
ing the  more  nutritious  parts  from  massing,  or  lumping,  so  that 
the  organs  and  secretions  do  not  properly  operate  on  them.  The 
digestive  organs  of  these  birds  are  adjusted  to  a  mixed  diet  con- 
taining a  considerable  proportion  of  indigestible  material.  Normally 
the  food,  even  on  good  range,  is  secured  only  by  effort  which  gives 
the  bird  all  the  exercise  needed  to  keep  it  in  good  condition.  The 
activities  of  the  birds  are  manifested  in  walking  and  running  after 

1  Such  a  point  is  much  more  difficult  to  determine  definitely  than  at  first  ap- 
pears. The  birds  may  eat  at  one  time  or  season  larger  quantities  of  one  kind  of 
food,  at  another  time  or  season  larger  quantities  of  another  kind  of  food,  accord- 
ing to  abundance  of  supply,  temperature,  etc.  Habit  and  familiarity  with  articles 
also  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with  their  selection  of  food,  and  so  observations  for 
short  periods  are  often  of  little  value.  But  whoever  closely  observes  the  feeding 
of  a  few  of  these  birds  on  a  range  where  food  of  all  kinds  is  abundant  and  they 
can  select  just  what  they  want,  cannot  fail  to  be  impressed  by  the  attention  that 
they  give  to  vegetation  and  insects,  and  by  the  difference  in  the  consumption  of 
grain  between  a  flock  on  good  range  and  a  yarded  flock  supplied  liberally  with 
the  vegetable  and  animal  foods  most  used  for  poultry  in  confinement. 


NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY  !77 

insects  (sometimes  with  the  assistance  of  the  wings)  quite  as  much 
as  in  scratching. 

The  common  waterfowls  (ducks  and  geese)  are  less  alike  in  diet 
than  the  strictly  land  birds.  Both  frequent  shallow  water  and  the 
margins  of  streams,  and  feed  largely  on  the  small  and  minute 
forms  of  animal  life  found  in  such  waters ;  but  ducks  are  more 
disposed  to  supplement  this  with  the  insects  which  abound  in  such 
localities,  while  geese  are  more  attracted  to  the  vegetation  in  the 
water  and  on  the  lowlands  near  by.  Neither  ducks  nor  geese  care 
much  for  whole  grains,  and  efforts  to  feed  them  whole  grains  in 
considerable  quantities  generally  give  very  unsatisfactory  results, 
because  their  nutritive  organs  are  not  adapted  to  dealing  with  food 
elements  in  that  form.  Their  bills,  though  excellent  for  securing 
small  food  in  water,  are  not  so  well  formed  to  picking  up  small 
grains,  and,  their  natural  diet  being  principally  of  soft  foods  which 
need  not  remain  long  in  the  crop,  that  organ  is  small  and  not 
adapted  to  a  diet  of  whole  or  broken  grains.  Ducks  in  domestica- 
tion are  often  grown  on  a  diet  which  consists  principally  of  ground 
grains,  and  may  be  fed  meat  much  more  freely  than  any  of  the 
other  kinds  of  poultry.  Geese  thrive  best  when  given  good  grass 
pasture  as  the  basis  of  their  ration,  with  ground  grain  to  supple- 
ment it.  Both  ducks  and  geese  are  gross  feeders,  eating  large 
quantities  of  bulky  foods.  They  take  exercise  mostly  in  the  water. 
The  goose  moves  in  a  most  leisurely  manner  on  land.  The  duck's 
movements  are  more  rapid  for  short  distances  (as  when  darting 
after  insects),  but  if  driven  out  of  a  slow  walk,  ducks  which  cannot 
fly  break  down  and  flounder  about  helplessly.  Neither  ducks  nor 
geese  seem  to  require  much  exercise  to  keep  them  in  condition. 

The  swan  feeds  mostly  from  the  surface  of  the  water,  living 
largely  on  coarse  grasses  and  weeds.  It  is  said  to  be  very  destruc- 
tive to  fish  spawn  and  young  fish. 

The  ostrich,  in  diet  and  feeding  habits,  has  more  resemblance  to 
the  goose  than  to  any  other  kind  of  poultry.  It  is  a  grazing  bird 
and  may  be  kept  on  pasture  without  other  foods. 

NOTE.  It  should  be  observed  that  in  the  natural  foods  of  all  kinds  of  poultry 
there  is  a  very  large  proportion  either  of  fibrous  matter  or  of  water  serving  as  a 
diluent  for  the  principal  nutrient  elements  ;  also,  that  in  a  natural  diet,  with  its 
great  variety  of  foods  of  all  kinds,  not  only  are  the  principal  food  elements 


178  POULTRY  CULTURE 

obtained  in  a  greater  variety  of  forms,  but  the  variety  of  minor  food  elements  is 
much  greater,  including  small  quantities  of  many  elements  not  secured  when  the 
birds  eat  only  such  food  as  man  may  profitably  provide  for  them.  The  function 
of  these  minor  elements  in  nutrition  is  little  understood.  The  fact  that  our 
domestic  animals  and  birds  thrive  better  on  a  ration  which  gives  them  a  variety 
of  those  elements  or  essences  characteristic  of  different  organisms  that  are  about 
equal  in  the  value  of  their  principal  nutrients,  suggests  that  they  have  functions 
of  great  importance  in  nutrition,  although,  in  the  present  state  of  knowledge  of 
the  subject,  they  cannot  be  included  in  food  calculations  based  on  the  chemical 
constituents  of  food  articles.  Again,  the  fact  that  certain  foods  are  evidently 
better  foods  for  certain  animals  than  other  foods  almost  identical  in  the  pro- 
portions of  their  principal  nutrients  indicates  that  the  peculiar  value  of  these 
foods  is  either  in  their  form  or  in  the  form  in  which  the  principal  nutrients 
appear  in  them,  or  in  some  of  the  minor  elements. 


Common  poultry  foods.  In  every  place  those  foods  (used  by  man 
for  himself  or  his  larger  domestic  animals)  which  can  be  fed  to 
poultry  most  economically  are  the  poultry  foods  in  general  use.  In 
any  section  the  grain  that  is  most  abundant  and  cheapest  is  likely 
to  be  the  principal  food  of  the  poultry  of  that  section.  Throughout 
the  greater  part  of  the  United  States  corn  is  the  principal  grain  fed 
to  poultry,  but  in  wheat-growing  sections  wheat  may  be  cheaper.  In 
Japan  rice  is  the  principal  grain  fed  to  poultry.  By-products  of  all 
kinds  of  food  preparations  form  an  increasingly  important  part  of 
the  common  poultry  foods.  In  a  sense  the  greater  part  of  all  food 
used  by  poultry  is  waste  product  or  by-product.  The  wheat,  oats, 
barley,  or  other  grain  fed  to  poultry  is  usually  of  inferior  grade, 
damaged,  or,  if  of  choice  quality,  only  temporarily  available  because 
of  an  oversupply  bringing  the  price  to  a  point  where  it  can  be 
profitably  fed  to  stock.  Even  of  corn,  which  is  produced  in  such 
enormous  quantities,  a  large  proportion  of  what  is  sold  for  stock 
feeding  is  of  poor  quality.  As  a  result  of  modern  methods  of  pre- 
paring and  handling  foodstuffs  for  man,  by-products  of  mills  and 
packing  houses,  in  great  number  and  quantity,  are  placed  on  the 
market  for  stock  feeding.  The  profitable  use  of  these  requires  some 
knowledge  of  the  composition  and  feeding  properties  and  values 
of  foods. 

Composition  of  foods.  Nutritive  elements  in  foods  are  proteids, 
carbohydrates,  fats,  and  ash  (mineral  matter).  All  foodstuffs  also 
contain  fiber  and  water,  the  proportions  of  these  varying  widely 


NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY  179 

according  to  the  kind  and  condition  of  the  article.  Fiber  is  largely 
indigestible.  Water  is  the  necessary  solvent  for  food  solids.  It  is 
present  in  sufficient  quantities  for  this  purpose  only  in  succulent 
vegetables  and  fruits  and  in  fresh  meats.  As  its  function  is  mechan- 
ical, it  is  not  considered  in  discussing  and  calculating  nutritive 
values,  but  in  feeding  practice  the  quantity  of  water  in  the  food 
may  have  an  important  bearing  on  results.  Fiber  also  seems  to 
have  a  mechanical  function. 

Protein  is  the  common  name  for  the  nitrogenous  substances 
which  supply  material  for  the  structure  of  the  body.  The  white 
(albumin)  of  an  egg  is  protein,  supplying  the  materials  for  a  fully 
developed  chick. 

Carbohydrates  are  principally  starches  and  sugars  supplying 
fuel  (for  heat  and  energy)  and  fat  (reserve  fuel  for  the  same 
purposes). 

Fats  (as  food)  are  considered  highly  concentrated  carbohydrates. 

Minerals  in  animal  nutrition  are  chiefly  calcium  and  phosphate 
compounds.  In  poultry  feeding,  lime  in  available  form  is  of  special 
importance. 

The  common  grains  contain  these  food  elements  in  snch  propor- 
tions that,  so  far  as  actual  nutrients  are  concerned,  any  of  them 
will  make  a  good  grain  ration  for  poultry  sufficiently  supplied  with 
green  food  and  animal  food,  and  so  able  to  balance  their  own 
ration,  as  they  do  in  the  natural  state.  The  differences  in  the 
composition  of  the  whole  grains  are  in  some  cases  considerable, 
yet  not  so  great  that  they  cannot  be  equalized  by  variation  in  the 
quantities  of  other  foods  and  by  the  power  of  organisms  to  utilize 
an  excess  of  one  kind  of  nutrients  to  supply  a  deficiency  of  an- 
other, or  to  conserve  available  supplies  of  another.  Thus  an  excess 
of  protein  is  converted  into  fat  and  stored  in  the  body,  and  an 
excess  of  carbohydrates  or  fat,  though  not  convertible  into  protein, 
is  also  stored  up  as  fat  in  the  body,  furnishing  a  reserve  of  heat  and 
energy.  The  by-products  of  articles  manufactured  for  human  beings 
often  have  nutrient  elements  in  quite  different  proportions  from 
the  articles  of  which  they  are  made.  Usually  the  by-product  is  less 
valuable  as  a  food,  but  in  some  cases  it  contains  a  larger  propor- 
tion of  some  valuable  element  (see  descriptions  of  foodstuffs  in 
the  next  chapter). 


l8o  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Nutrient  ratio.  The  relative  proportions  of  principal  elements 
in  food  articles  are  mathematically  expressed  in  the  form  of  a  ratio, 
commonly  called  the  nutritive  ratio,  but  more  correctly  described 
as  the  "  nutrient  ratio."  To  obtain  this  the  percentage  of  protein 
in  the  article  is  taken  as  the  first  term  of  the  ratio  ;  the  percentage 
of  carbohydrates  and  fats  (the  fats  being  reduced  to  terms  of  car- 
bohydrates)1 is  taken  as  the  second  term,  and  the  ratio  is  reduced 
to  its  simplest  form,  in  which  I  represents  the  value  of  the  protein. 
If  the  difference  in  the  proportions  of  the  two  classes  of  elements, 
as  thus  expressed  numerically,  is  small,  the  nutritive  ration  is  said 
to  have  a  narrow  ratio ;  if  the  difference  is  great,  the  ration  is  said 
to  have  a  wide  ratio.  Rations  having  a  narrow  ratio  are  called 
narrow  rations,  and  those  having  a  wide  ratio,  wide  rations ;  but 
these  terms  are  usually  employed  to  describe  the  relations  of  ra- 
tions compared,  not  to  a  standard,  but  to  each  other.  The  chem- 
ical values  of  the  nutrients  in  a  food  are  also  expressed  in  figures 
which  represent  the  total  heat-producing  value  of  all  elements  com- 
bined; this  is  called  \hefuel  vahte  or  potential  energy  of  the  article. 

The  chemical  composition  of  any  food  article  may  be  accurately 
determined  by  the  chemist,  and  the  nutrient  ratio  and  fuel  value 
established  and  expressed.  As  different  samples  vary  in  compo- 
sition, standards  for  general  use  are  made  by  taking  averages  of 
numbers  of  analyses  of  each  kind  of  food.  The  composition  of 
ordinary  lots  of  whole  foods  (as  grain,  hay,  milk,  and  meat  of  any 
kind)  will  closely  approximate  these  standards.  The  variations  from 
them  will  not,  as  a  rule,  be  great  enough  to  materially  affect  results 
in  feeding,  and  those  who  have  occasion  to  calculate  percentages 
may  assume  that  a  whole-food  article  which  appears  to  be  of 
average  quality  is  of  average,  or  standard,  chemical  composition. 
Nature  makes  no  variations  in  foods  so  great  as  to  disturb  the 
nutritive  processes  of  organisms  using  them. 

In  by-products  nutritive  values  are  less  stable  and  uniform. 
Nearly  all  states  now  require  such  products  to  be  sold  under  a 
guaranty  of  their  most  valuable  nutrients.  While  this  affords  the 
purchaser  protection  from  those  who  would  unscrupulously  pass 

1  This  is  done  by  multiplying  the  value  of  the  fats  by  2.25  or  by  2.27.  Author- 
ities are  not  all  agreed  in  regard  to  the  fraction,  and  it  makes  no  material  differ- 
ence, for  all  values  in  feeding  are  approximate  and  relative. 


NUTRITION  OF  POULTRY  l8l 

off  an  inferior  article,  it  does  not  always  inform  him  even  approxi- 
mately of  the  nutritive  value  of  the  article.  Many,  especially  of  the 
highly  concentrated  by-products,  run  very  unevenly  in  composition, 
and  the  manufacturers,  to  be  on  the  safe  side,  place  their  guaranty 
below  the  minimum  (see  "  Beef  scrap,"  Chapter  XII).  The  bulletins 
of  the  various  state  experiment  stations  giving  analyses  of  foods  of 
this  class  offered  for  sale  in  the  state  afford  the  most  trustworthy 
information  in  regard  to  their  composition. 

Neither  nutrient  ratio  nor  potential  energy  gives  a  generally 
applicable  standard  for  accurately  measuring  nutritive  values.  Both, 
however,  are  serviceable  in  comparisons  of  food  values,  and  com- 
parison of  either  the  nutrient  ratios  or  the  fuel  values  of  two  similar 
articles  often  shows  their  relative  feeding  values.  Judged  by  prac- 
tical observation,  a  comparison  which  considers  both  may  be  even 
more  accurate.  It  might  be  so  invariably  if  feeding  value  depended 
solely  on  the  quantities  and  proportions  of  the  principal  elements ; 
but,  as  the  description  of  foods  in  the  following  chapter  will  show, 
there  is  sometimes  a  very  great  difference  between  the  feeding 
value  of  two  articles  as  indicated  by  their  chemical  constitution  and 
as  demonstrated  in  practice. 

Nutrients  vary  in  digestibility.  Creatures  differ  in  digestive 
power,  and' the  same  creature  digests  a  certain  kind  of  food  more 
completely  at  one  time  than  at  another.  Investigators  of  the 
science  of  feeding  have  determined,  by  careful  experiment,  "diges- 
tion coefficients  "  for  most  of  the  common  food  articles  for  the 
larger  animals,  and  in  a  few  instances  for  poultry  ;  but,  in  the  case 
of  poultry  especially,  the  observations  are  too  few  and  the  results 
too  irregular  to  warrant  the  use  of  these  coefficients  in  a  study  of 
foods  and  feeding. 

Expression  of  nutritive  values.  Nutritive  standards  are  com- 
monly expressed  in  terms  of  nutrient  ratio  and  fuel  value.  Although, 
as  has  been  said,  neither  of  these  measures  is  accurate,  they  give 
the  best  basis  that  we  have  for  the  comparison  of  food  values  in 
numerical  terms.  They  are  found  for  each  kind  or  class  of  animals, 
and  for  each  purpose  for  which  the  animals  are  fed,  by  calculating 
the  chemical  values  of  rations  the  actual  feeding  value  of  which  has 
been  demonstrated  in  practice.  What  was  said  of  the  comparison 
of  values  of  different  food  articles  on  the  basis  of  nutrient  ratio 


I 82  POULTRY  CULTURE 

and  fuel  value  applies  as  well  to  comparisons  of  rations  contain- 
ing a  variety  of  foods,  both  with  other  rations  and  with  single  ar- 
ticles of  food.  For  this  purpose  any  article  or  ration  may  be  taken 
as  the  standard  with  which  others  are  compared  ;  but  it  is  most 
fitting  that  the  ration  or  article  selected  be,  if  a  ration,  a  complete, 
well-balanced  ration,  and  if  an  article,  that  food  article  which  in 
itself  is  nearest  to  a  complete  ration.  For  a  comparative  study  of 
foods  and  food  values  it  is  advisable  to  use-  a  single  article  rather 
than  a  ration  compounded  of  a  variety  of  articles  differing  widely 
in  physical  as  well  as  in  chemical  properties.  Such  a  single  stand- 
ard presents  to  the  eye  and  mind  of  the  feeder  a  tangible  and 
simple  standard  with  which  to  compare  all  other  articles  and  com- 
binations of  articles  used  as  food.  The  use  of  a  standard  of  this 
sort  has  the  added  advantage  that  it  compels  consideration  of  the 
physical  as  well  as  of  the  chemical  properties  of  foods. 

The  food  article  which  best  meets  the  requirements  for  a  single 
standard  food  for  poultry  is  wheat. 


CHAPTER    XII 
POULTRY  FOODS 

The  preceding  chapter  included  a  brief  explanation  of  the  general 
properties  of  foods  and  their  relations  to  the  nutrition  of  poultry. 
It  was  shown  that  the  food  value  of  an  article  was  not  determined 
solely  by  the  quantities  and  proportions  of  principal  nutrients  that 
it  contained,  but  was  affected  by  physical  properties  and  minor 
nutrients.  In  this  chapter  articles  used  for  poultry  food  will  be 
described  as  to  chemical  contents,  physical  properties,  and  feeding 
values  as  observed  in  practice.  Wheat,  the  single  food  article 
which  is  the  nearest  to  a  complete  food  for  poultry,  is  taken  as  a 
standard  of  comparison.  The  statement  of  the  chemical  composi- 
tion and  values  of  wheat  is  repeated  for  direct  comparison  with 
similar  data  for  each  group  of  foods  described,  and  differences  and 
resemblances  which  affect  feeding  practice  are  mentioned.  Only 
vyhole  articles  and  ordinary  by-products  are  described.  For  de- 
scriptions of  special  brands  and  mixtures,  and  of  proprietary 
articles,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  manufacturers  and  to  the 
bulletins  of  his  state  experiment  station.  In  making  so  full  a  list 
of  articles  which  may  be  used  as  food  for  poultry,  it  was  not  pos- 
sible to  secure  all  statements  of  chemical  analysis  from  the  same 
source,  and  the  figures  given  will  not  always  correspond  with 
others  to  which  the  reader  may  have  access.  Such  differences  are 
immaterial  and  may  be  disregarded.  In  the  study  of  food  values 
mathematically  expressed  the  student  should  always  bear  in  mind 
that  the  figures  represent  averages  of  samples  of  several  or  many 
grades. 

Wheat.  Wheat  contains  the  principal  nutrients  in  about  the  pro- 
portions that  analyses  of  ordinary  good  complete  rations  of  mixed 
grains  show.  Physically,  as  compared  with  other  grains  commonly 
used  for  poultry,  a  grain  of  wheat  is  medium  to  small  in  size,  and 
is  smooth,  having  no  hull.  Varieties  and  grades  of  wheat  vary  in 

183 


1 84 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


TABLE  I.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  WHEAT  AND  WHEAT 

PRODUCTS 


Water 

M 

to 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fats 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  (plump)     .... 
Wheat  (shrunken  or 
screenings) 

1.05 

ii  6 

1.8 

A    Q 

1.8 

2  Q 

11.9 

T  ->   r 

71.9 

6?  i 

1:6.3 
i  •  c  8 

102 

Low-grade  flour    .... 
Wheat  middlings  l    .    .    . 
Wheat  bran 

12.4 

12.  1 
I  I  Q 

i-y 
0.9 
4-6 

O  Q 

*'y 

0.7 

3-3 

<;8 

l-O 
IO.O 
I5.6 

1  1;  A. 

'-O-1 

75-o 
60.4 

C-5    Q 

j-u 
I.O 

4.0 

1  .  ^.0 

1:7.7 
1:4.7 

y/ 

101 

98 

Mixed  feed  1 

i  i.y 

Q  7 

j-u 
7  6 

1  J-4 
I  2  O 

jj-y 

i  •  c  8 

Vu 

Stale  bread  

31.2 

y-/ 

j-u 

6.9 

:>y-y 

44.2 

o-5 

1  o-° 
1:6.6 

94 
61 

color,  plumpness,  and  hardness.  The  harder  and  darker-colored 
wheats  are  richest  in  protein  and  most  valuable  as  poultry  foods. 
Whole  wheat  may  be  fed  exclusively  to  poultry,  without  apparent 
detriment,  for  a  longer  period  than  any  other  grain.  It  is  preferred 
by  most  kinds  of  poultry  to  all  other  grains  except  corn. 

Wheat  screenings.  When  free  from  foreign  matter,  wheat 
screenings  and  shrunken  wheat  are  practically  the  same,  and  do 
not  differ  noticeably  from  plump  wheat  in  feeding  value.  Screen- 
ings are  often  heavily  adulterated  with  weed  seeds,  grain  hulls,  etc., 
and  are  very  generally  sold  at  too  high  a  price,  because  many 
purchasers  will  take  the  lowest-priced  article  of  its  kind  without 
considering  quality.  It  is  quite  usual  to  find  wheat  screenings 
selling  readily  at  only  10  or  12  per  cent  below  the  price  of  good 
wheat,  when  the  value  (because  of  adulterants)  may  be  15  to  20 
per  cent,  or  even  more,  less  than  that  of  the  good  wheat. 

Low-grade  flour.  Wheat  flour  not  suitable  for  bread  making  is 
a  most  valuable  ingredient  in  mashes,  both  adding  to  the  nutrients 
and  improving  the  consistency  of  mashes  made  from  coarse  by- 
products. Low-grade  flour  is  also  called  red-dog  flour. 

Middlings.  Coarse  flour  and  fine  bran,  in  varying  proportions  in 
different  lots  and  in  the  products  of  different  mills,  is  called  mid- 
dlings. In  many  sections  middlings,  as  a  separate  article,  is  rarely 
found  on  the  market. 

1  The  term  "  shorts  "  in  some  sections  means  middlings  and  in  others  a  mix- 
ture of  bran  and  middlings.  It  is  sometimes  applied  indiscriminately  to  any  and 
all  kinds  of  wheat  offals. 


;    POULTRY  FOODS 

Bran.  Bran  is  the  coarser  part  of  ground  wheat.  Pure  bran  is 
much  lower  in  feeding  value  than  is  indicated  by  its  analysis. 
Much  of  the  product  now  sold  as  bran  contains  a  large  propor- 
tion of  middlings  and  is  also  sold  under  the  names  "  mixed  feed  " 
and  "  shorts." 

Stale  bread.  The  greater  part  of  the  stale  bread  used  for  poul- 
try food  is  white  bread,  but  often  the  refuse  bread  from  city 
bakeries,  hotels,  and  restaurants  contains  considerable  propor- 
tions of  other  kinds  of  bread  and  of  cake.  All  such  articles 
are  valuable  foods  for  poultry  and,  at  the  usual  prices,  are 
cheap  foods. 

NOTE.  A  comparison  of  the  nutrient  ratios  and  fuel  values  of  these  wheat 
products  with  those  of  whole  wheat  indicates  for  them  a  feeding  value  closely 
approximating  that  of  wheat,  but  stale  bread  is  the  only  one  of  them  that  in 
practice  gives  the  results  that  the  comparison  suggests.  Though  usually  fed 
only  as  a  part  of  the  ration  (in  a  mash),  it  has  been  used  for  long  periods,  with 
excellent  results,  as  the  only  grain  food  for  fowls  and  chicks  on  range.  The 
nutrient  ratio  is  nearly  the  same  as  that  of  wheat.  The  low  fuel  value  indi- 
cated is  due  to  the  high  per  cent  of  water.  Low-grade  flour,  differing  little 
from  wheat  in  the  proportions  and  values  of  principal  nutrients,  can,  because 
of  its  form,  be  fed  only  in  combination  with  coarser  and  less  glutinous  materials. 
Middlings  and  bran  both  compare  very  closely  with  wheat,  and  good  rations 
for  continuous  use  may  be  compounded,  having  the  nutrient  proportions  and 
fuel  values  of  these  by-products ;  yet  neither  of  them  alone,  nor  the  two  in 
combination,  will  go  very  far  in  feeding.  The  percentage  of  fiber  is  high  in 
both,  and  especially  high  in  bran.  Their  chief  service  in  poultry  feeding  is  to 
dilute  and  temper  the  corn  meal,  which  is  the  basis  of  most  mashes  and  which 
supplies  in  cheaper  form  some  of  the  nutrients  in  the  wheat  flour  of  which 
these  are  by-products. 

Corn.  In  nearly  all  parts  of  the  United  States  field  corn  is  the 
principal  grain  used  for  poultry  food.  In  percentages  of  nutrients 
it  does  not  differ  greatly  from  wheat,  except  in  fats.  The  grains  of 
corn  are  from  four  to  six  times  as  large  as  grains  of  wheat.  As  a 
rule,  when  poultry  have  access  to  a  variety  of  whole  grains,  they 
eat  the  corn  first.  When  cracked  corn  is  mixed  with  other  grains, 
this  preference  is  less  marked,  which  suggests  that  the  larger  size 
of  the  grain  may  be  the  attraction.  Yellow  and  white  corn  show  in 
analysis  no  difference  in  principal  nutrients.  In  feeding  practice 
no  difference  is  noted,  except  that  yellow  corn  gives  its  color  to 
the  fat  of  birds  fed  on  it  and  to  the  yolks  of  their  eggs.  Many 


i86 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


TABLE  II.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  CORN  AND  CORN 
PRODUCTS 


Water 

01 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fats 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat 

IO  Z 

i  8 

s 

i'6  ? 

/J  -V 

J  .  U.J 

Field  corn    .         .... 

IO.Q 

•  Q 

r 

IO  4. 

7O  7 

c  o 

'•  7  Q 

1  06 

Sweet  corn       

88 

8 

Q 

ii  6 

668 

8  i 

I  J  7   C 

III 

/•  J 

Pop  corn  

10.7 

.8 

•5 

I  1.2 

69.2 

5-2 

:7-3 

107 

Corn  meal  (unbolted)  .    . 

I2.O 

••> 

•3 

8.7 

71.1 

4-7 

:9-5 

104 

Corn  meal  (bolted)  .     .     . 

12.0 

.2 

.0 

8.9 

72.0 

4-9 

:9-5 

106 

Corn  meal  (granulated)    . 

12.5 

.O 

.0 

9.2 

74-4 

1.9 

:8.6 

102 

Corn  and  cob  meal  .     .    . 

I5-I 

6.6 

•5 

8.5 

64.8 

3-5 

:8.6 

94 

Hominy  meal   

TI.I 

3-8 

2-5 

9-3 

64.5 

8-3 

1:8.7 

1  08 

Gluten  meal 

Q6 

i  6 

O  7 

"'Q  A 

C^   A 

6a 

I    •  -7     •} 

iii 

J 

poultry  keepers  consider  hard  (flint)  corn  a  better  food  than  soft 
(dent)  corn,  but  in  common  practice  no  difference  is  observed. 
Sweet  corn  and  pop  corn  are  practically  the  same  in  feeding  value 
as  field  corn  but  are  not  generally  available  for  poultry  feeding. 
Because  whole  corn  may  be  eaten  so  rapidly  that  a  full  meal  is 
quickly  secured  without  exercise,  the  practice  of  feeding  cracked 
corn  has  become  general.  Cracked  corn,  when  fresh,  does  not 
differ  in  composition  from  the  whole  corn  of  which  it  was  made, 
but  after  being  cracked  it  may  deteriorate  rapidly,  especially  in 
warm  weather.  It  is  peculiarly  subject  to  heating  and  to  molds, 
and  when  stale  or  moldy  is  a  most  unsafe  food,  particularly  for 
young  stock.  It  is  usually  cracked  in  two  sizes,  —  coarse,  for  general 
use,  and  fine,  for  small  chicks.  Corn  is  the  most  easily  digested  of 
the  common  grains.  Because  of  this  and  its  heating  properties,  the 
free  use  of  corn  for  fowls  in  close  confinement  and  not  plentifully 
supplied  with  green  food  is  usually  followed,  in  hot  weather,  by 
digestive  disorders.  With  due  attention  to  exercise,  and  with  abun- 
dant supplies  of  green  food  and  the  less  concentrated  animal  foods 
(insects,  milk),  good  results  may  be  obtained  from  a  diet  in  which 
corn  is  the  only  grain  fed.  In  extreme  cold  weather  it  may  be  fed 
more  freely. 

Corn  meal.  Corn  meal  is  the  foundation  of  most  mashes  for 
poultry.  Coarse,  unbolted  meal  is  to  be  preferred,  and  if  mashes 
are  cooked  or  given  time  to  swell  after  mixing,  the  coarser  corn  chop 


POULTRY  FOODS  187 

will  be  still  better.  The  corn  meals  on  the  market  vary  greatly  in 
quality ;  a  great  deal  of  what  is  offered  for  stock  feeding  is  made 
of  inferior  or  damaged  corn.  Corn  meal  is  very  liable  to  heat  in 
warm  weather.  The  heating  may  be  stopped  by  spreading  the  meal 
two  or  three  inches  thick  in  a  bin  or  on  a  clean  floor,  but  if  the 
meal  when  cold  smells  musty  or  sour,  it  should  not  be  fed  to  poultry. 

Corn  bran  and  corn  middlings.  Corn  bran  has  considerably  less 
food  value  than  corn  meal..  Corn  middlings  is  richer  than  meal  in 
both  protein  and  fat,  and  probably  has  a  slightly  greater  feeding 
value. 

Corn  and  cob  meal.  Unless  a  large  part  of  the  coarse,  fibrous 
material  of  the  cob  is  sifted  out,  corn  and  cob  meal  does  not  make 
a  satisfactory  poultry  food.  As  a  rule,  poultrymen  prefer  to  dilute 
corn-meal  mixtures  with  wheat  bran  or  finely  cut  hay. 

Hominy  meal.  The  soft  part  of  the  corn  kernel  remaining  after 
the  hard  part  has  been  separated  in  the  manufacture  of  hominy 
grits  is  ground  into  hominy  meal.  It  has  about  the  same  analysis 
as  corn  meal,  and  in  localities  where  it  can  be  obtained  is  often 
substituted  for  it,  as  the  more  economical  of  the  two  foods. 

Gluten  meal  and  gluten  feed.  Gluten  meal  is  one  of  the  prod- 
ucts separated  from  corn  in  the  manufacture  of  glucose ;  gluten 
feed  is  a  mixture  of  this  with  other  by-products  of  the  same  process. 
Both  are  very  rich  in  protein  and  fat.  They  are  not  extensively 
used  for  poultry,  chiefly,  perhaps,  because  meat  meals  and  scraps 
have  been  found  so  satisfactory  in  supplementing  the  supplies  of 
those  elements  in  the  ordinary  poultry  foods. 

Whole  oats.  When  of  good  quality,  whole  oats  are  about  equal 
to  wheat  in  feeding  value.  The  fibrous  hull  makes  them  less 
acceptable  to  poultry  than  a  smooth  grain,  and  when  a  choice  is 
offered,  they  neglect  the  oats.  When  kept  on  an  oat  diet,  how- 
ever, they  eat  oats  freely,  provided  they  are  of  good  quality.  In  oat- 
growing  sections,  oats  are  often  the  only  grain  fed.  Clipped  and 
hulled  oats  are  sometimes  used,  but  do  not  appear  to  be  more  at- 
tractive to  poultry  than  whole  oats  of  good  quality.  Birds  familiar 
with  other  grains  show  a  lack  of  eagerness  for  hulled  oats  and  va- 
rious milled  forms  of  oats ;  this  indicates  that  the  fibrous  hull  is 
not  the  only  feature  objectionable  to  them.  It  is  probable  that  the 
objectionable  property  is  the  fat,  which  is  as  abundant  as  in  corn 


i88 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


TABLE  III.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  OATS  AND  OAT 
PRODUCTS 


Water 

.     % 

Fiber 
91 

Ash 

Protein 

Starches 

M 
.         % 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  
Oats 

10.5 
n.o 
7-9 

7-7 

8.2 

9.2 
8.4 

1.8 

9-5 
0.9 

i9-3 
12.5 

3-8 

1.8 

3-o 

2.O 

3-7 
4.2 

3-2 
1.9 

77.9 
1  1.  8 
14.7 

7-i 

12.6 
2O.O 
I5.0 

77.9 

59-7 
67.4 

57-9 
56.3 
56.2 
66.6 

2.1 

5-o 
7-i 
2-3 

6.2 

7.6 

7-5 

1:6.3 
:6.i 

:5.8 
:8-9 

:5-7 
:3-7 
:5-7 

102 
96 

"3 
81 
96 
1  08 
114 

Oatmeal 

Oat  bran  

Oat  feed                     .    . 

Oat  middlings 

Rolled  oats  

and  has  a  less  pleasing  flavor.  The  generally  poor  quality  of  oats 
offered  for  stock  food  tends  to  diminish  their  use  as  food  for  poultry. 

Oatmeal.  Oatmeal  was  long  considered  the  best  of  foods  for 
chicks.  This  idea  of  its  quality  was  based  on  tradition  rather  than 
on  results.  It  was  common,  years  ago,  for  poultry  growers  to  buy 
the  pinhead  oatmeal  prepared  for  human  food,  paying  for  it  three  or 
four  times  the  price  of  corn  products,  which,  with  a  little  modi- 
fication, could  be  made  equal  in  nutrient  values  (if  that  were  neces- 
sary) and  which  are  much  preferred  by  the  poultry.  Of  late  years 
the  use  of  oat  products  for  young  chickens  is  less  common,  and 
rolled  oats  is  generally  used  instead  of  oatmeal.  At  the  usual 
prices  they  are  not  economical  foods. 

Oat  bran  and  oat  feed.  As  Table  III  shows,  oat  bran  and 
oat  feed  contain  very  large  percentages  of  fiber.  They  are  rarely 
offered  for  sale  as  straight  products,  but  appear  in  combination 
with  ingredients  which  supplement  their  deficiencies. 

Oat  middlings.  Oat  middlings  is  a  high-quality  product,  but  is 
not  extensively  manufactured  and  is  not  much  used  for  poultry. 

Sprouted  oats.  Oats  sprouted  until  the  blades  are  from  four  to 
six  inches  long  are  much  relished  by  poultry,  but  it  is  usually  more 
economical  to  provide  a  green  food  which  does  not  require  so 
much  care  in  preparation. 

Barley.  By  analysis  barley  appears  almost  identical  with  wheat 
in  feeding  value.  Its  nutritive  ratio  is  slightly  narrower  and  by 
so  much  nearer  to  that  of  average  good  rations.  As  usually  sold, 
with  the  hull  on,  it  is  eaten  by  poultry  less  readily  than  wheat, 


POULTRY  FOODS 


189 


TABLE  IV.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  BARLEY  AND  BARLEY 

PRODUCTS 


• 

Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  

10.5 
10.9 
12.4 
11.9 
IO.2 
8.2 

1.8 

2.7 
7.6 
6.5 
10.7 

II.O 

1.8 

2.4 
3-6 

2.6 

5-7 
3-6 

n.9 
12.4 

12.2 
10-5 
23.2 
I9.9 

77.9 
69.8 
6l.6 
66.3 
48.5 

51-? 

2.1 

1.8 

2.6 
2.2 

'•7 

5-6 

r:6.3 

:6 

:5-5 
:6.8 
:2.3 
:3-3 

102 
IOO 
92 

93 

8? 
97 

Barley 

Barley  screenings    .     .    . 
Barley  meal     .         ... 

Malt  sprouts 

Brewer's  grains  (dry)  .     . 

but  in  barley  of  good  grade  the  proportion  of  fiber  is  small  com- 
pared, with  the  fiber  content  of  good  oats,  and  fowls  habituated  to 
the  use  of  whole  barley,  and  not  also  supplied  with  wheat,  will  eat 
it  quite  as  freely  as  they  would  wheat.  In  practical  feeding,  wheat 
and  barley  show  no  difference  in  results.  There  is  an  increasing  use 
of  whole  barley  as  poultry  food  in  barley-growing  sections.  Its  use 
in  other  sections  is  less  general,  because  of  irregularity  of  supply. 
It  is  usually  sold  at  a  figure  enough  lower  than  the  price  of  wheat 
of  corresponding  quality  to  make  it  the  more  economical  food. 

Barley  screenings.  Barley  screenings  consist  of  the  less-developed 
grains  and  often  contain  broken  hulls,  particles  of  straw,  etc.  If 
clean  they  may  be  equal  to  good  barley  in  feeding  value. 

Barley  meal.  Barley  meal  is  almost  unknown  to  American 
poultry  keepers,  very  little  of  this  grain  being  milled. 

Malt  sprouts.  The  sprouts  removed  from  barley  sprouted  in 
the  manufacture  of  beer  are  used  principally  for  cattle  feed  but 
occasionally  for  poultry. 

Dried  brewer's  grains.  The  residue  from  barley  in  the  manu- 
facture of  beer  consists  of  a  small  part  of  the  starch  with  most  of 
the  gluten,  the  germ,  and  the  hull  and  is  called  brewer's  grain. 
Its  use  as  poultry  food  has  not  been  extensive  enough  to  determine 
its  value.  At  an  appropriate  price  it  should  be  a  valuable  food. 

Rye.  From  the  poultry  feeder's  standpoint  rye  is  an  anomaly 
among  grains.  As  analyzed  it  closely  resembles  wheat  and  is  not 
markedly  unlike  it  in  appearance  ;  the  grains  are  smooth  and  a 
little  smaller  in  size.  When  fed  to  poultry  accustomed  to  other 
grains,  rye  is  eaten  by  them  reluctantly  and  in  small  quantities. 


190 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


On  the  other  hand,  the  fact  that  poultry  having  access  to  ground 
recently  seeded  with  rye,  though  liberally  fed  on  other  grains,  eat 
it  as  readily  as  any  grain,  suggests  that  the  changes  incident  to 
germination  make  it  more  palatable  to  them.  The  extent  to  which 
rye  is  used  as  food  for  both  human  beings  and  live  stock  in  some 

TABLE  V.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  RYE  AND  RYE  PRODUCTS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

Ci 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  
Rve 

10.5 

u.6 
n.6 

1.8 
!-7 

3-5 

1.8 
1.9 
3-6 

77.9 
10.6 
14.7 

77.9 

72.5 
63.8 

2.1 

i-7 

2.8 

1:6.3 

1:7.2 
1:4-8 

1  02 
100 
98 

Rye  bran      

foreign  countries  indicates  that  it  does  not  differ  greatly  from  the 
other  grains  in  actual  feeding  value,  and  that,  if  necessary,  it  might 
be  more  extensively  used  here.  With  abundance  of  other  foods 
there  is  no  occasion  to  force  poultry  to  a  rye  diet. 


TABLE  VI.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  MIXED  MILL  FEEDS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

°1 

h 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

Starches 

M 

h 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat                     .... 

/o.< 

1.8 

1.8 

77  O 

77  Q 

2.1 

1-6  ? 

I  O2 

Corn  and  oat  chop  (equal 

parts)    .     .    .    .    »    .    . 

11.9 

*y  t 

9.6 

7I.91 

4-4 

1:8.6 

1  06 

Corn  (8  parts)  and  bran 

(5  parts)  feed  .... 

"•5 

2.7 

10.6 

7I.2l 

4.0 

1:7.6 

!°5 

"  Provender"  (corn,  45  Ibs.  ; 

oats,  125  Ibs.;   bran,  100 

Ibs.) 

0.4 

10.4 

*.i 

I7.O 

<8.8 

C.7 

I  •  'v'l 

Q7 

Corn,  rye,  and  oats  (equal 

parts) 

JO  A 

I  O 

10  6 

T\  7  J 

-\  4 

i  :  7.4 

1  06 

Mixed  mill  feeds.  Under  this  head  are  described  ground  mix- 
tures of  the  common  grains  and  of  their  by-products.  Such  mix- 
tures are  usually  made  for  a  special  demand,  or  to  work  off  grains, 
like  rye  and  low-grade  oats,  that  are  not  readily  salable  in  their 
natural  form.  They  are,  as  a  rule,  more  uniform  in  quality  and 

1  Including  fiber. 


POULTRY  FOODS 


191 


more  satisfactory  than  mixtures  of  by-products,  because  all  nutri- 
ents are  present  in  natural  proportions.  The  chief  fault  in  mix- 
tures containing  oats  is  the  presence  of  the  loose,  broken  hulls, 
which,  apparently,  irritate  the  digestive  organs  much  more  than 
when  swallowed  on  the  whole  oat.  On  this  account  these  mixtures 
are  particularly  injurious  to  young  poultry,  and  when  fed  to  them 
should  be  sifted  before  wetting.  They  are  also  liable  to  heating  in 
warm  weather. 

^ 

TABLE  VII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  BUCKWHEAT  AND 
BUCKWHEAT  PRODUCTS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

Oi 

Fat 

M 

10 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  .     

IO.Z 

1.8 

1.8 

77.  Q 

71  Q 

2  I 

1-6  ? 

Buckwheat  

12.6 

8.7 

2.O 

IO.O 

64.5 

2.2 

«:? 

83 

Buckwheat  groats    .     .    . 

10.6 

°-3 

0.6 

4.8 

83.I 

0.6 

1:17 

103 

Buckwheat  bran  .... 

14.0 

14.7 

3-4 

17.1 

46.4 

4-4 

i:3-3 

85 

Buckwheat  middlings  .     . 

13.2 

4.1 

4.8 

28.9 

41.9 

7-i 

I  \2.l 

IOI 

Buckwheat.  As  a  food  for  poultry,  buckwheat  appears  much 
oftener  in  grain  mixtures  than  alone.  Its  analysis  compares  quite 
closely  with  that  of  wheat,  except  as  to  fiber  and  ash.  It  is  a  large 
seed,  angular,  with  hard  hull,  and  poultry  are  quite  indifferent  to 
it  in  the  whole  form. 

Buckwheat  groats,  buckwheat  bran,  and  buckwheat  middlings. 
Buckwheat  groats  is  hulled  or  crushed  buckwheat.  Buckwheat  bran 
is  sometimes  used  in  place  of  wheat  bran  and  is  very  satisfactory. 
Buckwheat  middlings  is  also  used  occasionally  in  mashes.  None 
of  the  buckwheat  products,  however,  are  extensively  used  for  poul- 
try in  this  country.  In  Europe  their  use  is  more  common,  as  the 
preference  there  for  white  fat  in  poultry  makes  corn  an  objection- 
able food. 

Rice.  Rice  and  rice  products  are  little  used  as  poultry  food 
except  in  countries  where  rice  is  the  staple  food  for  human  beings. 
In  this  country  the  quantities  available  at  prices  which  warrant 
feeding  to  poultry  are  too  limited  to  admit  of  their  general  use. 
Broken  rice  is  often  used  in  chick-feed  mixtures.  Occasionally  a 
poultryman  secures  a  lot  of  broken  or  slightly  damaged  rice,  or  of 


192 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


a  rice  by-product,  at  a  price  proportionate  to  its  feeding  value  and 
to  the  price  of  staple  grains  fed  to  poultry. 

TABLE  VIII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  RICE  AND  RICE 
PRODUCTS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

Of 
JO 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  

7O.< 

1.8 

1.8 

II.Q 

"7I.Q 

2.1 

/:6.9 

IO2 

Rice         

12.4 

O.2 

0.4 

7-4 

7Q.2 

O.4 

i  :  IO.Q 

\Q^ 

Rice  bran 

Q*7 

9c 

IO  O 

I  °   I 

4Q  Q 

88 

I   *   C   Q 

Q  ^ 

Rice  hulls    

8.2 

-5  C.7 

IT..2 

1.6 

78.6 

0.7 

i  :  1  1.2 

48 

Rice  flour    ... 

IO  O 

6  -\ 

6? 

117 

c;8  o 

7  7 

i  :6  ; 

80 

Sorghum  seed.  Sorghum  seed  is  more  like  corn  than  wheat  in 
its  constituents,  but  is  smaller  than  wheat,  round  and  smooth.  It 
is  not  generally  available  for  poultry  food  but,  when  procurable  at 
a  price  not  higher  than  that  of  wheat,  makes  a  desirable  food.  Sor- 
ghum-seed meal  may  be  used,  in  whole  or  in  part,  as  a  substitute 
for  corn  meal. 


TABLE  IX.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  SORGHUM-  AND  BROOM- 
CORN  SEEDS  AND  THEIR  PRODUCTS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

Oi 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat 

IO  f 

i  8 

/  8 

II  O 

IJ  I   Q 

2  I 

1-6  1 

1  02 

Sorghum  seed     .... 

12.8 

2.6 

2.1 

9.I 

70.0 

3-6 

1:8.6 

I  O2 

Sorghum-seed  meal     .    . 

13.2 

1.8 

1.6 

8-3 

71-3 

3-8 

1:9.2 

102 

Broom-corn  seed     .    .     . 

14.1 

7-i 

2.0 

9.6 

647 

3-5 

1:7.6 

95 

Broom-corn-seed  meal     . 

13-5 

6.9 

2.1 

9-7 

64.2 

3-6 

i:7-3 

95 

Broom-corn  seed.  Broom-corn  seed  is  nearer  wheat  in  nutrient 
ratio  than  sorghum  seed  and  lower  in  fuel  value.  In  appearance  it 
greatly  resembles  sorghum  seed.  Poultry  may  not  eat  it  freely  with 
the  hull  on,  but  will  eat  the  cleaned  seed  quite  as  readily  as  wheat, 
and  thrive  just  as  well  on  it.  Broom-corn-seed  meal  may  be  used 
to  some  extent  as  a  substitute  for  corn  meal  and  middlings. 

Flaxseed  and  cotton  seed.  Whole  flaxseed  and  cotton  seed  can 
hardly  be  considered  as  poultry  foods,  but  their  analyses  are  given 


POULTRY  FOODS 


193 


for  purposes  of  comparison.  If  available,  either  could  be  used  in 
small  quantities,  but  it  would  not  be  advisable  to  compel  poultry  to 
eat  more  of  seeds  so  rich  in  vegetable  fats  and  protein  than  they 
would  take  freely  when  fed  a  liberal  general  ration. 

TABLE  X.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  FLAXSEED  AND  COTTON 
SEED  AND  THEIR  PRODUCTS 


Water 

Fiber 

Of 
10 

Ash 

Protein 

Starches 

Fat 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat                     .... 

1.8 

2.8 

1  1  .Q 

*7  1  Q 

2  I 

1-6  ? 

Flaxseed 

II  8 

7  Q 

3     A 

^17 

19  6 

Ground  linseed    .... 

8.1 

7-3 

4-7 

21.6 

27.9 

3°-4 

:4.8 

T37 

Linseed  meal  (old  process) 

9.2 

8.9 

5-7 

32-9 

35-4 

7-9 

11.7 

99 

Linseed  meal  (new  process) 
Cotton  seed 

IO.I 
Q.Q 

9-5 

2^  6 

5.8 

47 

33-2 

IQ  4. 

38.4 

21  Q 

IQ  ^ 

:i.4 

91 

IOI 

Cottonseed  meal      .     .     . 

8.2 

5.6 

7.2 

42.3 

23.6 

I3:1 

:i.3 

in 

Cottonseed  hulls      ... 

10.4 

44-4 

2.6 

4.0 

36.6 

2.0 

no.i 

52 

Cottonseed  feed  .... 

5-9 

21-57 

4-4 

23-9 

37-5 

6.8 

:2.3 

89 

Ground  linseed.  Ground  flaxseed  from  which  the  oil  has  not 
been  extracted  is  called  ground  linseed. 

Linseed  meal.  Linseed  meal  is  ground  flaxseed  from  which  the 
oil  has  been  extracted.  Old-process  meal  is  made  from  seed  from 
which  as  much  as  possible  of  the  oil  has  been  extracted  by  pressure. 
New-process  meal  is  made  from  the  residue  of  seed  from  which 
a  large  percentage  of  the  oil  has  been  removed  by  a  chemical 
process.  Old-process  linseed  meal  is  often  called  simply  oil  meal. 
New-process  linseed  meal  often  goes  by  the  trade  name  "  Cleve- 
land flax  meal." 

Cottonseed  meal,  cottonseed  feed,  and  cottonseed  hulls.  Cotton- 
seed meal  is  the  only  one  of  the  three  by-products  of  the  manufac- 
ture of  cottonseed  oil  in  which  a  poultry  feeder  would  usually  be 
interested.  Cottonseed  feed  might  be  used  (at  the  right  price)  in 
a  ration  which  did  not  otherwise  contain  much  fiber  and  fat.  The 
meals  of  this  class  are  sometimes  used  in  poultry  feeding,  but  are 
not  popular  as  poultry  foods,  because  it  is  found  generally  more 
satisfactory  to  use  animal  foods  to  add  to  the  protein  and  fat  in 
grain  and  vegetable  rations.  Cottonseed  hulls  are  of  little  value 
for  poultry. 


194 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Peas  and  beans.  In  limited  quantities  peas  and  small  beans  are 
readily  eaten  by  poultry.  They  will  regularly  eat  a  little,  but  object 
to  large  proportions  of  them  in  their  rations.  Pea  meal  is  sometimes 
used  in  mashes,  but  more  by  amateurs  and  experimenters  trying  to 
secure  maximum  results  than  by  others.  All  these  products  are 


TABLE  XI.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  PEAS  AND  BEANS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

Of 

h 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat 

IO.G 

1.8 

/  8 

ii  .0 

7/  Q 

2  I 

l'6  ? 

I  O2 

Peas     

1^.4 

6.4 

2.4 

22.4 

S2.6 

7.O 

:  2.4 

Sc 

Cowpeas  

14.8 

4.1 

T..2 

20.8 

c  r  7 

I  4 

:->  8 

Q"7 

Pea  meal      

10.  c 

14  4 

2  6 

2O  2 

c  j  i 

I  ^ 

12  6 

8s 

White  field  beans    .    .    . 

15.0 

3-2 

3-i 

20-4 

56.7 

1.6 

:3 

93 

Navy  beans      

12.4 

7.2 

•5  7 

22.2 

C-3.I 

I  4 

:  2.c 

QO 

Soy  beans    

10.8 

4.8 

4-7 

34-o 

28.8 

16.9 

:2.i 

117 

Soy-bean  meal     .... 

10.4 

2.6 

5-i 

36.0 

27.0 

18.9 

:2.6 

I23 

unquestionably  good  poultry  foods  when  properly  combined  with 
others  in  rations,  but  supplies  are  irregular  and  prices  usually  too 
high  as  compared  with  staple  grain  products  to  warrant  using 
them  extensively. 

Miscellaneous  seeds.  Of  the  seeds  given  in  Table  XII  only  Kafir 
corn  and  millet  are  of  any  considerable  importance  to  American 
poultry  feeders.  In  regions  where  it  is  grown,  Kafir  corn  has  been 
quite  extensively  used  for  poultry,  and  is  reputed  equal  to  wheat, 
with  which  it  corresponds  quite  closely  in  analysis.  Chinese  and 
Egyptian  corn  and  durra  are  akin  to  Kafir  corn.  These  seeds  are 
rarely  available  for  poultry  feeding.  Millet  is  useful  in  a  combina- 
tion of  fine  grains  for  small  chicks,  or  as  a  light  feed  for  fowls,  but 
can  be  profitably  used  only  when  below  wheat  in  price,  and  then  only 
to  a  limited  extent.  In  feeding  millets  of  different  varieties  it  will  be 
observed  that  poultry  prefer  those  having  the  largest  seeds.  Sun- 
flower seed  has  a  traditional  reputation  as  an  excellent  conditioner, 
adding  luster  to  the  plumage.  Its  value  for  this  purpose  appears 
greatest  when  fed  to  fowls  whose  ration  is  deficient  in  fat,  as  is 
the  case  with  many  flocks  whose  keepers  are  prejudiced  against 
the  use  of  corn  and  meat.  Birds  having  a  ration  sufficient  in  fat 


POULTRY  FOODS 


J95 


do  not  usually  show  any  eagerness  for  sunflower  seed  offered  to 
them  in  the  hull,  or  shell  (the  seed  might  be  classed  as  a  nut), 
though  they  eat  the  meat  greedily  when  it  is  removed  from  the  hull. 

TABLE  XII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  MISCELLANEOUS  SEEDS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

01 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat  

10.5 

1.8 

1.8 

77.9 

77.9 

2.1 

1:6.3 

I  O2 

Chicken  corn1     .... 

14.8 

8.7 

4-3 

1  0.0 

58.9 

2.7 

:6.2 

87 

Chinese  corn  

7-9 

1.8 

J-5 

9.6 

75-5 

3-7 

:8.8 

108 

Durra  

7.6 

i-5 

1-7 

9-0 

76.0 

4.2 

:9-6 

no 

Kafir  corn 

9-3 

1.4 

'•5 

9-9 

74-9 

3-o 

:8.3 

106 

Egyptian  corn      .... 

12.6 

1.9 

1.9 

9-9 

69-7 

3-9 

:8 

103 

Millet  -.    .    * 

i3-5 

9-5 

3-o 

12.7 

58.0 

3-3 

:5-3 

82 

Hempseed  ^  .: 

8.0 

14.0 

2.O 

IO.O 

45-° 

2I.O 

:9-7 

119 

Rapeseed     .....'. 

13.8 

10.0 

3-9 

19.4 

10.4 

42.5 

:6.3 

147 

Sunflower  seed    .... 

8.0 

28.5 

3-° 

13.0 

23-9 

23.6 

:6.3 

105 

Green  foods.    The  common  things  available  for  green  food  are 
quite  similar  in  composition  and  very  low  in  feeding  value  when 


TABLE  XIII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  GRASSES  AND  LEAVES 

(GREEN) 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 
« 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat                      '   -f    .    . 

70  f 

1.8 

1.8 

II.Q 

77.O 

2.1 

1:6.3 

IO2 

Grass  (clippings)     .    . 
Clover,  red      .         ... 

76.4 

70  8 

4.1 

8  i 

2.4 

2.1 

2.3 

4-4 

I3.8 

I7.S 

I.O 
I.I 

•7 

-.T..-7 

15 
27 

Alfalfa     
Alfilaria2     
Barley      

80.0 
80.0 

7Q.O 

4-7 
4-7 

7.0 

i-7 
r-7 
8.8 

4-9 

2.8 

2.7 

7-9 
9.8 
8.0 

0.7 
0.9 

0.6 

:i.9 
'4-3 
:3-5 

17 

17 

14 

Corn    
Cabbage 

79-3 

QO  ^ 

5-o 

J    C 

1.2 
I  4- 

1.8 

2.4 

12.2 
7.Q 

°-5 
0.4 

-7-5 

18 
8 

Lettuce    

yv-j 

QC  Q 

O.  S 

0.8 

I.O 

1.6 

0.2 

:2.i 

4 

Spinach  
Beet  tops     
Rape    .... 

92.4 
90.0 
86O 

0-7 

1.9 

O.I 
2.O 

2.1 

i-3 

I.C 

2.4 

2-3 
8.63 

°-5 
o-3 

:i.7 
•2.3 
:5-4 

6 

5 

12 

Onion  tops  

QI.O 

O.I 

0.8 

3.0 

O.2 

12.7 

8 

1  Sorghiim  vulgare. 

2  Akin  to  alfalfa.    It  grows  wild  in  Southern  California. 


3  Including  fat. 


196  POULTRY  CULTURE 

compared  with  wheat.  The  feeding  value  of  all  these  things  is 
not  so  much  in  the  principal  nutrients  as  in  their  succulence  and 
the  elements  peculiar  to  the  green  state.  In  the  grasses  these 
may  be  preserved  in  part  by  careful  curing,  but  the  vegetables  are 
useful  only  when  green. 

Cabbage.  Because  it  is  easily  kept  green,  cabbage  is  the  most 
valuable  of  all  foods  of  this  class  for  poultry.  Cabbage,  sown  thickly 
in  rows  and  fed  from  these  sowings  without  waiting  for  heads,  has 
been  found  one  of  the  most  economical  of  green  foods. 

Lettuce.  Poultry  often,  if  not  usually,  prefer  fresh  lettuce  to  cab- 
bage, but  it  has  not  the  keeping  properties  of  cabbage. 

Spinach  and  beet  tops.  Unless  very  young  and  tender,  the  leaves 
of  spinach  and  beets  are  eaten  freely  only  when  the  poultry  are 
short  of  favorite  green  foods. 

Rape.  Rape  may  be  pastured  or  cut  continuously,  and  is  much 
in  favor  with  poultry  keepers  for  sowing  in  yards,  or  for  feeding 
to  birds  in  close  confinement. 

Onion  tops.  The  tops  of  onions  are  eaten  in  small  or  moderate 
quantities  by  all  kinds  of  poultry.  They  are  usually  kept  from  birds 
about  to  be  used  for  table  purposes,  and  from  those  producing  eggs 
for  the  table,  because  they  impart  their  flavor  to  flesh  and  eggs. 

Green-corn  leaves  and  stalks,  wheat,  barley,  oats,  rye,  etc.  Any 
succulent  fodder  may  be  used  for  green  food  if  cut  up  so  that  the 
birds  can  eat  it.  Such  things  are  usually  fed  where  green  crops 
in  considerable  quantities  must  be  grown  especially  for  poultry 
and  must  be  available  before  crops  like  lettuce  and  early  cabbage 
are  harvested,  and  the  unmarketable  surplus  can  be  used  for 
poultry  food. 

Ensilage.  All  kinds  of  ensilage  can  be  fed  to  poultry,  but  it  is 
usually  found  more  convenient  to  use  cabbage  and  succulent  roots. 

Clovers  and  alfalfa.  The  only  hays  that  specially  interest  the 
poultry  feeder  are  the  clovers  and  alfalfa.  It  is  desirable  that  both 
be  cut  while  immature  and  very  succulent,  and  that  the  green  color 
be  preserved  as  much  as  possible  in  the  curing.  These  hays,  as 
cured  for  other  stock,  usually  contain  a  large  proportion  of  coarse 
stems.  When  they  are  fed  to  cattle  on  the  place,  it  is  a  common 
practice  to  reserve  for  the  poultry  the  leaves  shaken  off  in  handling 
the  hay. 


POULTRY  FOODS 


TABLE  XIV.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  HAYS  (DRY) 


I97 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

Of 

lo 

Ash 

Protein 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat      .     .    V  .-  ..    ..    .- 

10.8 

1.8 

1.8 

1  1  .Q 

71  O 

^  7 

/•/>  ? 

Red  clover            .... 

I  C.-J 

24.8 

6.2 

\*>  -> 

-*8  i 

•5    -1 

1*77 

67 

\Vhite  clover 

0.7 

24..  I 

8  T 

I  C  7 

-7Q    T 

J'J 

2  Q 

1  •  o-/ 

r# 

Alfalfa     ...'.... 

8.4 

25.0 

74 

14-3 

jy-j 

42.7 

^.y 

2.2 

1-3-4 

71 
7-1 

Clover  meal  and  alfalfa  meal.  Hay  meals  are  in  no  way  better 
than  finely  cut  hay,  while  it  is  much  easier  to  adulterate  them  or 
to  mix  with  the  leaves  a  large  proportion  of  the  woody  stems. 

TABLE  XV.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  ROOTS  AND  ROOT 
BY-PRODUCTS 


Water 

Fiber 

M 

lo 

Ash 

Of 

to 

Protein 

% 

Starches 
% 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

IVkeat  •-^^-  .    .    .    •    :" 

JO.< 

1.8 

1.8 

II.Q 

7I.O 

2.1 

1:6.3 

I  O2 

Potatoes  (white)  .*  .    .    .: 
Potatoes  (sweet),    v  V  . 
Beets  (mangel-wurzel) 
Beets  (red)  .    .    .._.'.  ,.^ 
Beets  (sugar)  

78.9 

71.1 
90.9 

88.5 

86.  t: 

0.6 

!-3 

0.9 
0.9 

O.Q 

I.O 
I.O 

I.I 

I.O 
O.Q 

2.1 

i-5 
i-4 
i-5 
1.8 

T7-3 
24.7 

5-5 
8.0 
9.8 

O.I 
0.4 
O.2 
O.I 
O.I 

:8.3 
117.  1 
'4-3 

:5-5 
:  c.c 

22 
31 

8 
ii 
13 

Beet  pulp  (fresh)     .    .   ". 
Beet  pulp  (silage)    .    .    . 
Beet  molasses               .  ~-  . 

90.0 
88.9 

2  C  7 

2.1 

3-6 

0.4 

°-5 
8.8 

1.2 

!-5 

7.^ 

6.2 

5-4 
S8.21 

O.I 
O.2 

'•S-4 
•4 
:8 

9 
8 

7C 

Turnips   .-'• 

QO.  ^ 

1.2 

0.8 

I.I 

6.2 

O.2 

:6 

8 

Rutabaga     .    .    *    . 
Carrots    .     .    .•    .    . 

88.6 
88.6 

i-3 

l.T. 

1.2 
I.O 

I.I 

7-5 
7.6 

O.2 
O-4 

:6.6 

:7.8 

10 
1  1 

Parsnips       .    '•    . 

81.0 

6.T, 

I.O 

1.6 

8.5 

T.6 

17.8 

15 

Onions     .     .     .     .    «... 
Artichokes 

87.6 
70.  e 

0.7 

0.8 

0.6 

I.O 

1.4 

2.6 

9-4 
15.9 

0-3 
0.2 

:7.2 
:6 

13 

Potatoes.  Though  the  most  important  roots  in  the  diet  of  human 
beings,  potatoes  should  be  fed  to  poultry  sparingly.  In  a  cooked 
mash  they  are  eaten  readily,  but  if  the  proportion  of  potatoes  in  the 
mash  goes  above  1 5  to  20  per  cent,  and  the  birds  are  full  fed  of 
mash,  it  seems  to  cloy  them  and  spoil  the  appetite  for  the  next 
meal.  Raw  potatoes  are  sometimes  fed  to  poultry,  but  are  not  eaten 
readily  unless  the  birds  are  very  hungry  for  succulent  food. 

1  Sugar. 


198 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Mangel-wurzel  and  sugar  beets.  The  most  valuable  roots  for 
poultry  are  the  mangel-wurzel  and  sugar  beets.  They  are  eaten 
freely  and  have  no  bad  effects.  They  cannot  take  the  place  of 
green  food  fully  but,  being  sweet  and  very  succulent,  are  as  good 
a  substitute  for  it  as  can  be  obtained.  They  are  easily  kept  and 
require  no  preparation  before  feeding. 

Beet  by-products.  The  by-products  of  beets  are  now  attracting 
attention  as  food  for  poultry,  but  have  not  been  used  enough  to 
show  how  they  can  be  fed  to  best  advantage. 

Turnips.  Turnips  are  fed  both  raw  and  in  cooked  mashes. 
When  fresh  and  sweet  they  appear  to  be  as  good  raw  as  mangels, 
but  they  do  not  keep  so  well  and,  as  soon  as  they  begin  to  decay, 
are  likely  to  give  a  disagreeable  flavor  to  the  eggs  of  fowls  eating 
them.  The  feeding  of  turnips  not  perfectly  sound  is  probably  re- 
sponsible for  the  general  belief  that  any  turnip  will  taint  eggs. 

Carrots  and  parsnips.  Carrots  and  parsnips  are  fed  mostly  in 
cooked  mashes,  small,  unsalable  roots  being  used. 

Onions.  In  any  form  onions  are  much  relished  by  poultry.  Only 
very  small  quantities  of  raw  onions  can  be  given  without  flavoring 
eggs  and  flesh.  Cooked  onions  may  be  fed  more  freely,  as  cook- 
ing drives  off  the  volatile  oil  which  gives  the  onion  its  peculiar 
pungency. 

TABLE  XVI.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  FRUITS 


Water 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

1 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  02. 

Wheat 

10  % 

1.8 

i  8 

Tf   Q 

"71  O 

2  I 

i'6  ? 

Apples 

84.1 

I.Q 

O  2 

r  j.y 
O.2 

M~\ 

O.7 

•  **&• 

;7  .  e 

17 

Tomatoes         .... 

QI.-J 

O  7 

O  7 

I  O 

;S 

O  tj 

•  7 

Cucumbers  .    .    .    .    .'  .• 
Pumpkin  (flesh)  .    .  .  .    . 
Pumpkin  (seeds  and 
stringy  part)     .    .  .„•...•:  . 
Pie  melons 

96.O 

93-5 
76.9 

Q4   ^ 

0-7 
I.O 

3-9 

o-5 
0.6 

i-5 

0.8 
0.9 

6.0 
08 

1.8 
3-9 

4.8 

O.2 
O.I 

6.9 

:-.8 
:4.6 

•  *•> 

3 
6 

3i 

Watermelons  

Q2.A 

o  \ 

O  A, 

I  71 

O  ^ 

•  c 

Grapes     .    .                   '•      '" 

77  4 

A     •J 

O  ^ 

I  ~\ 

14  Q 

i  6 

'14  ^ 

28 

Peaches  .    .    *     ' 

80  A 

<+'J 

i  6 

WO 

O  A. 

1  -J 

O  7 

c.8 

O  I 

'86 

Pears  .....*    ,•••»'-  '•• 

°y-4 
80  9 

j-u 

j  c 

O   ^ 

I  O 

j-° 

I  c  7 

o  c 

:  17 

10 

Plums  -i-  -5 

78  4 

lmj 

I  O 

->0  I1 

;  -?o 

24 

Including  fiber. 


POULTRY  FOODS 


199 


Apples.  All  fruits  and  berries  of  temperate  regions  are  eaten 
with  relish  by  poultry,  but  the  apple  is  the  only  one  that  seems  to 
contribute  substantially  to  their  nourishment.  The  others  may  be 
eaten  in  considerable  quantities  without  any  notable  decrease  in  the 
amount  of  grain  required,  but  birds  having  access  to  all  the  apples 
that  they  can  eat  will  often  eat  much  less  grain  than  usual  and 
thrive  remarkably. 

TABLE  XVII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  MEAT  BY-PRODUCTS 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

M 

lo 

Protein 

Starches 
% 

Fat 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat                     .  '  i""V    ."'  '" 

IO.Z 

/  8 

1.8 

//  Q 

77  Q 

2  I 

•6  ? 

Green  bones    .     .    .    .    .   : 
Beef  scrap       

6.9 

I.-J 

24-5 
8.0 

22.3 

c;8.o 

I6.5 
12  Q 

:i.8 

•  I  4 

69 
I  ^4. 

Pork  scrap 

08 

£7  A 

-JQ  (S 

•  i  7 

I7O 

Dried  blood     .    .    .    .    .. 
Blood  meal  . 

6.7 

0.6 

2.2 

6.6 

•38 

65.I 
74..  I 

5-3 
88 

16.3 

-7    I 

:o.6 

;  o  2 

124 
JOT 

Green  bones.  As  usually  collected,  bones  have  some  meat  adher- 
ing. Different  lots  vary  considerably  in  protein  and  fat.  Green  cut 
bone  of  average  composition  is  generally  considered  the  best  of  all 
animal  foods  for  poultry.  Its  use  is  limited  by  the  difficulty  of  se- 
curing regular  supplies,  by  the  labor  of  preparing  it,  and  by  the 
impossibility  of  keeping  the  prepared  bone  on  hand  in  quantity  in 
any  but  extreme  cold  weather. 

Beef  scrap,  pork  scrap,  meat  meal,  blood  meal,  dried  blood,  etc. 
are  cooked  preparations  of  the  offal  of  slaughterhouses  and  packing 
houses.  The  scraps  and  meals  are  usually  the  residue  of  rendered 
lard  and  tallow,  scraps  being  coarsely,  and  meal  finely,  ground. 
Goods  of  this  class  are  often  adulterated  with  material  fit  only  for 
fertilizer.  Even  when  composed  wholly  of  edible  elements,  there 
are  wide  variations  in  quality,  due  to  differences  in  condition  of 
material  used.  A  good  article  may  usually  be  known  by  its  appear- 
ance and  by  its  odor  when  scalded.  It  should  have  the  odor  of 
cooked  meat,  not  that  of  fertilizer.  The  great  advantages  in  using 
these  preparations  are  their  convenience  and  their  keeping  qual- 
ities. Most  of  them  will  keep  for  some  months  under  any  ordinary 
conditions.  Stored  in  a  cool,  dry  place,  goods  of  this  kind  have 
been  kept  for  several  years  without  apparent  deterioration. 


2OO 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


In  the  general  experience  of  poultry  men  the  use  of  cooked-meat 
preparations  has  been  found  the  best  way  to  add  protein  and  fat  to 
rations  deficient  in  those  elements.  While  they  are  very  valuable 
articles,  their  use  is  attended  always  with  more  or  less  risk,  In 
addition  to  the  dangers  of  unfit  food  already  mentioned,  there  is 
danger  of  overfeeding  a  good  article.  These  preparations  are  so 
highly  stimulating  that  the  poultryman  is  tempted  to  feed  all  of 
them  that  he  dares;  and,  to  further  increase  the  risk,  manufac- 
turers, in  their  desire  to  sell  the  largest  possible  quantities,  recom- 
mend feeding  much  larger  percentages  than  it  would  be  safe  to 
feed  continuously  if  the  goods  contained  even  the  minimum  quan- 
tities of  protein  and  fat  guaranteed.  As  they  often  contain  much 
greater  percentages  of  these  elements,. it  is  not  at  all  unusual  for 
poultry  keepers  following  manufacturers'  instructions  to  get  into 
serious  trouble  through  overfeeding  products  which  are  so  much 
more  concentrated  than  fresh  meat.  In  special  cases  (to  be  men- 
tioned later)  they  may  be  fed  very  heavily ;  usually  it  is  safest  to 
use  only  about  half  the  amounts  that  the  manufacturers  suggest. 


TABLE  XVIII.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  FISH,  FISH  SCRAP, 
AND  SHELLFISH 


Water 

% 

Fiber 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

01 
/o 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

Oi 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat                

IO.X 

1,8 

/  8 

II.  Q 

71  .0 

2  I 

1-6  ? 

I  O2 

Fresh  fish  (general  average) 
Fish  scrap 

44.0 

42.0  1 

1.0 

10-5 

'I  A    O 

2-5 

6  c 

:o.5 

•  O  A 

18 
^6 

Oysters  (in  shell)     .    . 
Long  clams  (in  shell)  .    . 
Round  clams  (in  shell)    . 
Mussels   

154 
48.4 

27-3 

4.2  7 

82.3 

43-61 

68.3 

4Q  ~\ 

0.4 

i-5 

0.9 

I  O 

I.I 

4-8 

2.1 
4    A 

0.6 
i.i 

1-3 

2  I 

uo 

O.2 

0.6 

O.I 

O  C 

:  i 
:o.5 
:o.7 

•  O  7 

DU 
3 
8 

4 

Lobsters  (in  shell)   .    .... 
Crabs  (in  shell)    .... 

31-1 
34-i 

62.1 
55-8 

0.6 
1.4 

5-5 
7-3 

0-5 

0.7 
0.9 

:o-3 
:o.4 

8 
ii 

Fresh  fish.  All  kinds  of  poultry  seem  to  like  fresh  fish,  and 
it  could  probably  be  fed  to  the  limit  of  their  appetites  without 
detriment,  but  it  is  usually  available  for  poultry  food  only  in  small 

1  Refuse  (bone,  skin,  shells).  This  analysis  is  taken  from  a  table  of  analysis 
of  foods  for  human  beings,  —  for  which  purpose  shells  are  offal.  The  ash  content 
is  of  the  fish  without  shell. 


POULTRY  FOODS 


2OI 


quantities  in  kitchen  waste.  Tainted  fish  is  likely  to  give  a  strong 
flavor  to  the  flesh  and  eggs  of  birds  to  which  it  is  fed. 

Fish  scrap.  Fish  scrap  is  not  in  high  favor  as  a  poultry  food. 
A  possible  reason  for  this  is  the  poor  quality  of  what  is  offered. 
The  same  quality  is  often  sold  for  poultry  food  and  for  fertilizer. 
The  bad  effects  of  such  articles  are  more  quickly  apparent  when 
fed  in  moist  mashes  than  when  fed  in  dry  mashes.  A  good,  clean 
fish  scrap  should  make  an -excellent  poultry  food,  but  too  much  of 
what  is  sold  does  not  answer  this  description,  and  the  price,  as 
compared  with  the  price  of  beef  scrap,  is  usually  far  too  high. 

Shellfish.  Poultry  keepers  living  near  the  sea  often  give  shell- 
fish very  freely.  A  common  practice  is  to  grind  shell  and  all  to- 
gether. Fed  in  this  way  they  are  eaten  with  avidity  and  give 
most  excellent  results. 


TABLE  XIX.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  MILK  AND  MILK 
BY-PRODUCTS 


Water 

Of 

/o 

Fiber 

% 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat       .     .    . 

IO  < 

i  8 

i  8 

II  O 

77  O 

J.  U.J 

Whole  milk      .    .    .    .    . 

87.2 

3-5 

4-8 

3-7 

1:4 

18 

Skim  milk  (raised)  .    .    . 

90.4 

3-1 

4-7 

0.8 

i  :2 

II 

Skim  milk  (separated) 

9O.6 

2.9 

5-2 

°-3 

-.2 

10 

Buttermilk  .    ...... 

90.1 

3-9 

4.0 

I.O 

:i.6 

II 

Whey                .         ... 

cn  8 

O  A. 

06 

51 

O  I 

"8  ; 

•uo 

Cheese    .    .    ,    .    ... 

T.A.A 

2"?  7 

1.7 

-?6  Q 

•  4 

1  07 

Milk  albumin                      ,~ 

24  8 

-J    C 

-?  Q 

I  -?  q 

TO  Q 

-j  o 

'.  A.  A 

8^ 

Milk.  All  milk  products  are  good  poultry  foods.  The  exterjt  of 
their  use  in  any  case  is  determined  by  the  supply  and  the  price. 

Separated  skim  milk  and  buttermilk  are  the  forms  of  milk  most 
generally  available  for  poultry  feeding.  In  the  vicinity  of  a  cream- 
ery separated  skim  milk  and  buttermilk  are  often  very  low  in  price 
and  can  be  obtained  in  any  quantity.  Milk  is  usually  given  as  a 
drink.  When  the  supply  is  sufficient,  many  poultrymen  use  milk 
instead  of  water,  to  mix  the  mash.  In  this  way  the  birds  consume 
more  of  it  than  they  otherwise  would.  No  bad  effects  have  been 
observed  in  such  forced  feeding  of  this  article ;  indeed,  from  the 
experience  of  Dr.  C.  F.  Hodges,  of  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  in 


2O2 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


growing  quail  in  captivity,  it  appears  that  the  occasional  feeding 
of  buttermilk  separately  is  most  distinctly  beneficial.  Investigations 
at  the  Ontario  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  have  also  indi- 
cated a  measurable  feeding  value  for  whey,  which,  when  separated 
from  the  curd,  had  usually  been  thrown  away  by  poultry  keepers 
as  of  no  value. 

Cheese.  Cheese  unsalable  as  food  for  human  beings  is  sometimes 
available  for  poultry.  Products  of  this  kind  are,  as  a  rule,  best  fed 
after  being  cut  up  (in  a  meat  or  bone  cutter)  and  mixed  in  mash, 
thus  insuring  approximately  uniform  distribution  and  the  minimum 
of  waste. 

Milk  albumin.  The  albumin  separated  from  milk  in  the  manu- 
facture of  milk  sugar  is  a  valuable  poultry  food,  but  supplies  of  it 
in  the  market  are  irregular. 


TABLE  XX.    COMPOSITION  AND  VALUES  OF  EGGS 


Water 

Fiber1 

Ash 

% 

Protein 

% 

Starches 

% 

Fat 

% 

Nutrient 
Ratio 

Calories 
in  i  oz. 

Wheat 

IO.  f 

1.8 

1.8 

II.O 

7i.o 

2.1 

/•£.? 

I  O2 

TTo-orc  (hen) 

6c;  c 

112 

O  Q 

II  Q 

Q    •? 

I  'I  8 

4O 

Esffirs  (duck) 

60.8 

1-1.7 

0.8 

12.  1 

12.  t; 

i  :  2.7 

47 

Efifffs  (sroose) 

CQ.7 

14.2 

O.Q 

I2.Q 

12.7 

i  :  2.2 

48 

Effffs  (turkev) 

61  * 

n8 

08 

I  2  "> 

Q  7 

1:1.8 

4O 

Eggs  (guinea)      .... 

60.5 

16.9 

0.8 

II.9 

9-9 

1:1.9 

40 

Eggs.  The  eggs  fed  to  poultry  are  usually  infertile  eggs  tested 
out  at  different  stages  of  incubation.  Wherever  considerable 
numbers  of  poultry  are  hatched,  the  infertile  eggs  are  of  much 
importance  as  food.  Even  those  containing  dead  germs  may  be 
used  for  this  purpose,  if  decay  has  not  reached  the  stage  where 
an  offensive  odor  is  produced.  When  mixed  raw  with  ground  grain 
or  mixed  in  cake  batter  and  cooked,  eggs  may  be  fed  very  freely. 
The  hard-boiled  egg,  traditionally  the  best  first  feed  for  young 
chickens,  is  as  well  omitted  from  their  diet.  The  preparation 
in  this  form  is  unnecessary,  and  if  the  eggs  are  stale,  or  if  the 
cooking  makes  the  white  very  tough,  digestion  may  be  difficult. 
As  its  analysis  shows,  the  egg  is  a  highly  concentrated  food.  All 

i  Shell. 


POULTRY  FOODS  203 

such  foods  need  to  be  used  with  caution,  when  their  natural  form 
is  changed,  as  by  cooking. 

Mineral  foods.  The  mineral  elements  (ash)  in  foods,  disregarded 
in  calculations  of  food  values,  are  of  great  importance  in  nutrition 
and  more  important  to  poultry  than  to  any  other  kind  of  domestic 
creature.  The  rate  of  growth  of  young  poultry  is  very  much  more 
rapid  than  that  of  young  horses,  cattle,  sheep,  and  swine.  A  chick 
weighing  i^  ounces  when  hatched,  and  27  ounces  at  ten  weeks  of 
age,  has  in  the  ten  weeks  multiplied  its  original  weight  eighteen 
times.  In  ducks  and  geese  the  rate  is  even  more  rapid.  In  all 
young  poultry  adequately  supplied  with  material  for  making  bone, 
the  rate  of  growth  of  the  skeleton  is  more  rapid  than  that  of  the 
flesh  (muscle).  The  adult  female  laying  regularly  requires  (for  the 
shells  of  the  eggs)  much  larger  percentages  of  lime  in  her  food 
than  any  other  creature  consumes.  Although  (as  the  tables  of  analy- 
ses show)  nearly  all  foods  contain  some  mineral  elements,  and  many 
contain  quite  large  proportions  of  these  elements,1  green  bone  is 
the  only  common  article  of  food  carrying  a  percentage  of  mineral 
matter  large  enough  to  make  it  valuable  for  its  special  supply  of  ele- 
ments of  this  kind.  Because  green  bone  (from  its  limited  use)  is  not 
a  dependable  source  of  supply  of  mineral  foods,  it  is  usual  to  supply 
pure  mineral  foods,  sometimes  in  small  quantities  finely  ground  in 
mashes,  but  more  generally  in  coarser  form  in  receptacles  from 
which  the  birds  take  what  they  want  as  appetite  directs.  Dry  bones, 
shells,  and  various  kinds  of  rock  ground  or  crushed  to  convenient 
size  are  used  for  this  purpose.  Charcoal  is  also  commonly  used 
as  an  accessory  to  poultry  rations.  The  actual  need  of  these  ac- 
cessories and  the  quantities  needed  depend  in  any  case  upon  the 
amounts  of  mineral  elements  that  the  birds  may  secure  in  other 
foods,  or  may  pick  up  for  themselves.  The  subject  has  not  received 
much  attention  from  investigators,  and  nearly  all  studies  along  this 
line  have  included  observations  on  grit  based  on  the  assumption  that 
the  primary  function  of  grit  is  to  grind  food  in  the  gizzard.  From 
such  investigations  as  have  been  made,  and  from  common  observa- 
tion, it  appears  that  in  ordinary  good  feeding  of  mixed  rations 
under  good  conditions  (range)  young  birds  get  quite  all  the  mineral 

1  Some  foods  low  in  protein  and  fat  are  especially  valuable  for  their  ash  con- 
tent; thus,  bran  is  rich  in  phosphorus  in  an  especially  useful  condition. 


204  POULTRY  CULTURE 

elements  that  they  require,1  and  that  adult  birds  get  all  that  they  need 
except  for  the  formation  of  eggshells  when  they  are  laying  heavily. 

Dry  bone.  Granulated  or  finely  broken  dry  bone  and  bone  meal 
are  the  commercial  forms  in  which  bones  are  supplied  for  poultry 
feeding.  Left  to  themselves,  poultry  will  not  injure  themselves  with 
bone  in  any  form  unless  the  ration  they  have  been  receiving  has 
been  very  deficient  in  mineral  elements.  Bone  meal  is  usually  given 
in  the  mash  and  is  a  frequent  cause  of  trouble.  It  should  be  used 
only  occasionally  and  always  in  very  small  quantities. 

Oyster  shells.  Crushed  or  ground  oyster  shells  are  the  most 
popular  shell  food  for  laying  hens.  As  a  rule  young  stock  do  not 
care  for  ground  shell.  If  they  are  forced  to  eat  it,  no  injury  may 
follow,  but  neither  will  there  be  any  apparent  benefit.  The  need  of 
material  for  eggshells  and  the  value  of  oyster  and  similar  shells  for 
this  purpose  may  be  easily  and  quickly  demonstrated  in  practice. 
When  shell  supplies  have  been  insufficient,  the  beneficial  effects 
of  feeding  shell  will  appear  within  two  or  three  days. 

Digestible  minerals.  The  digestible  minerals  are  principally  in 
the  form  of  grits,  the  chief  value  of  which  is  in  the  soluble  mineral 
elements,  that  either  contribute  directly  to  nutrition  or  assist  chemi- 
cally some  vital  process.  When  fed  with  indigestible  grits,  hens 
whose  ration  lacked  mineral  elements  have  frequently  been  known 
to  consume  and  void  very  large  quantities  of  grit  daily.2 

.   '.Ttf 

1  How  far  these  are  derived  from  other  foods  and  how  far  from  minerals  picked 
up  on  the  range  is  a  question  for  investigation.    The  question  of  grit,  whether 
for  grinding  or  as  a  supply  of  mineral  elements  required  in  nutrition,  is  much  more 
easily  disposed  of  in  practice  than  in  theory.    Poultry  keepers  in  practice  gener- 
ally leave  it  to  the  poultry.    Grit  is  cheap,  and,  keeping  a  supply  of  it  before  the 
birds,  they  know  that  if  the  birds  need  it,  they  have  it.   That  disposes  of  the  ques- 
tion in  practice  but  does  not  affect  its  merits.    I  followed  the  common  practice 
long  after  I  was  convinced  in  my  own  mind  that  the  birds  had  no  need  of  grit  to 
grind  their  food,  but  finally  abandoned  it,  and  since  about  1902  have  given  no  grit 
to  poultry  except  coarse  gravel  in  the  first  feeds  of  young  ducks  and  geese.   The 
function  of  this  appears  to  be  mechanical  and  to  relate  as  much  to  the  operation 
of  the  crop  as  to  the  operation  of  the  gizzard.   This  is  sometimes  apparent,  also,  in 
feeding  adults  fowls  and  ducks.    The  beneficial  effects  of  coarse  material  are  sometimes 
seen  immediately  on  feeding  that  material,  and  long  before  it  reaches  the  gizzard. 

2  In  two  such  cases  reported  to  me,  consumption  was  at  the  rate  of  over  a 
quart  per  day  for  twelve  medium-sized  hens.   A  pen  of  twenty-five  extra  large  hens 
in  my  yards,  supplied  with  indigestible  grit  and  oyster  shell,  consumed  in  eight 
months  less  than  a  pint  of  the  grit,  but  frequently  ate  a  quart  of  shell  a  week, 
the  consumption  varying  regularly  according  to  egg  production. 


POULTRY  FOODS  205 

Charcoal.  Charcoal  is  usually  recommended  for  its  medicinal 
value.  It  is  said  to  be  a  blood  purifier  and  an  absorbent  of  noxious 
gases  generated  in  indigestion.  The  practical  poultry  keeper  usually 
holds  the  same  attitude  toward  charcoal  as  toward  grit :  it  is  inex- 
pensive, and  by  keeping  it  before  the  birds  he  makes  sure  that 
they  get  what  they  need.  The  occasional  practice  of  feeding  pow- 
dered charcoal  in  a  mash  is  not  to  be  recommended.  From  con- 
sideration of  the  properties  claimed  for  charcoal  it  is  obvious  that 
there  can  be  little  need  of  it  when  all  conditions  are  favorable  and 
when  the  diet  is  right. 


.     /  CHAPTER  XIII 

RATIONS   AND  METHODS   OF  FEEDING 

A  ration.  In  poultry  feeding,  the  term  "ration"  refers  particu- 
larly to  the  composition  of  the  daily  diet  of  a  flock.  The  quantity  of 
the  ration  is  sometimes  stated  for  flocks  of  given  numbers,  but  the 
numbers  in  flocks  and  the  sizes  of  birds  are  so  variable  that  deter- 
minations of  quantity  must  be  made  separately  for  each  case.  By 
the  daily  ration  is  meant,  usually,  the  food  given.  If  the  birds 
are  in  yards  large  enough  to  supply  them  with  green  food  and 
with  some 'animal  food,  the  ration  given  might  be  wholly  of  grain 
and  the  ration  eaten  might  still  contain  all  the  green  food  that  the 
birds  would  eat  and  enough  animal  food  to  make  the  failure  of  the 
keeper  to  supply  that  kind  of  food  a  matter  of  slight  consequence. 
In  such  a  case  the  ration  given  is  a  grain  ration  ;  the  ration  eaten 
is  a  mixed  or  varied  ration.  Poultry  wholly  dependent  on  their 
keeper  for  food  require  that  varied  rations  be  given  them.  They 
may  subsist  for  long  periods  on  one  kind  of  food  or  on  a  ration 
giving  little  variety,  but  variety  in  the  forms  of  food  is  one  kind 
of  quality  in  a  ration,  and  a  ration  lacking  this  is  as  insufficient  as 
one  that  lacks  the  required  quantity  of  any  nutritive  element. 

A  balanced  ration.  In  the  usual  technical  sense  of  the  phrase,  a 
balanced  ration  is  a  ration  in  which  nitrogenous  and  non-nitroge- 
nous elements  are  properly  proportioned  to  meet  the  requirements 
of  the  creature  considered  and  the  purpose  for  which  the  ration  is 
used, —  that  is,  a  ration  having  the  correct  nutrient  ratio.  In  the 
broadest  practical  sense  a  balanced  ration  is  one  in  which  all 
properties  perceptibly  affecting  nutrition  and  results  are  in  equi- 
librium. A  ration  may  have  the  right  proportions  of  principal 
nutrients  and  yet  carry  too  much  fiber  or  too  much  mineral  matter  ; 
or  it  may  be  too  concentrated  and  "  burn  "  the  digestive  organs  ;  or 
it  may  be  so  bulky  that  the  greatest  quantity  the  creature  could 
consume  would  not  provide  sufficient  nourishment.  The  propor- 
tions of  hard  and  soft  foods  must  also  be  balanced  in  some  rations 

206 


RATIONS  AND   METHODS  OF  FEEDING  2O7 

to  secure  the  advantages  of  soft  food  and  yet  avoid  the  digestive 
disorders  which  may  result  from  using  it  too  freely. 

A  balanced  ration  is  an  average  ration.  From  the  nature  of 
the  case  it  is  impossible  for  the  feeder  to  make  the  adjustment 
of  a  ration  to  requirements  accurate.  The  requirements  of  a  crea- 
ture vary  from  season  to  season  and  from  day  to  day.  Different 
lots  of  the  same  food  article  differ  in  composition.  It  is  not 
possible  to  exactly  determine  the  requirements  of  a  creature  at 
any  point  of  time,  nor  is  it  practicable  to  analyse  foods  as  used  ; 
but  as  average  requirements  of  creatures  can  be  determined  from 
observations  covering  long  periods  of  time,  as  the  average  of 
analyses  of  many  samples  of  a  food  gives  approximately  the  com- 
position of  ordinary  lots  of  that  food,  and  as  experience  has  taught 
the  right  general  proportions  of  concentrated  and  bulky,  hard  and 
soft,  dry  and  wet  foods  for  rations  for  different  kinds  of  poultry 
and  for  different  purposes,  a  ration  balanced  according  to  average 
analyses  gives  an  average  ration  which  will  serve  as  a  standard, 
and  which,  properly  used,  should  give  good  results  in  every  case, 
though  in  many  cases  some  modification  of  it  would  give  better 
results.  Such  modifications  of  standard,  balanced  rations  can  be 
made  only  by  each  feeder  on  personal  knowledge  of  the  results 
of  using  the  standard  ration  in  any  case,  and  with  an  understand- 
ing of  the  properties  of  foods  and  of  the  probable  results  of 
making  changes  in  the  ration. 

In  practice,  such  an  adjustment  of  rations  to  requirements  of 
poultry  is  a  much  simpler  matter  than  it  seems  when  stated ;  for, 
as  far  as  opportunity  is  given  them,  the  birds  select  their  food  to 
meet  their  physiological  needs,  and  hence  nice  judgment  in  feeding 
is  not  needed  except  to  get  results  which,  however  profitable  to 
the  poultry  keeper,  and  however  necessary  for  his  purpose,  are 
inimical  to  the  physical  welfare  of  the  birds  (as  in  feeding  young 
chickens  for  very  rapid  growth,  or  hens  for  great  egg  production, 
or  in  fattening  poultry  of  any  kind).  In  reality,  in  such  cases  the 
feeder's  object  is  not  to  feed  a  balanced  ration  but  to  get  as 
far  as  possible  from  it  in  a  particular  direction.  Thus,  in  feeding 
for  rapid  growth,  development  of  the  body  may  be  secured  at  the 
expense  of  vitality,  while  in  fattening,  the  rations  are  so  rich  in 
fats  and  non-nitrogenous  matter  that  many  birds  cannot  stand 


208  POULTRY  CULTURE 

them  at  all.  Good  judgment  in  selecting  birds  to  be  fed  for  a 
special  purpose  is  the  prime  thing  in  feeding  for  that  purpose. 

In  common  practice,  feeding  poultry  is  simple,  easy  work.  The 
best  feeding  is,  in  fact,  so  simple  that  the  most  of  those  who 
undertake  to  feed  correctly  and  fail,  do  so  because  they  make  the 
work  unnecessarily  complicated,  and  rely  too  much  on  their  own 
understanding  of  the  science  of  feeding  and  too  little  on  the 
natural  capacity  of  the  birds  to  balance  their  own  rations.  Given 
normal,  healthy,  rugged  birds  and  favorable  conditions,  a  bright 
child  of  ten,  sufficiently  interested  in  a  flock  of  poultry  to  give  it 
regular  attention,  can  feed  it  as  well  as  any  one.  On  the  other 
hand,  when  debilitated  stock  is  kept  under  unnatural  conditions, 
all  the  knowledge  of  foods  and  all  the  skill  and  ingenuity  in 
feeding  that  can  be  applied  may  be  needed  to  get  the  same 
results.1 

Methods  of  feeding  are  determined  by  foods,  conditions,  objects. 
General  practice  in  any  line  of  poultry  feeding  comes  ultimately  to 
the  cheapest  foods  and  the  simplest  methods  that  can  be  used. 

Foods.  When  the  work  is  actually  on  an  economic  basis,  the 
greater  part  of  the  rations  used  for  poultry  in  any  locality  is  deter- 
mined by  supplies  in  that  locality,  —  either  the  surplus  suitable  for 
poultry  food  produced  there  or  the  surplus  shipped  in  from  other 
sections.  The  available  foods  are  not  always  those  which  give 
absolutely  the  best  results,  but  they  usually  give  the  greatest  profits. 

Conditions  affecting  feeding  require  as  much  consideration  as 
the  composition  of  the  ration.  When  the  birds  are  kept  under  such 
conditions  that  they  secure  a  part  of  their  food  for  themselves,  the 
kind  and  quantity  thus  secured  have  to  be  considered  in  deciding 
what  food  shall  be  given  them.  When  conditions  are  such  that  they 
secure  little  or  no  food  by  foraging,  it  may  be  necessary  to  devise 
methods  of  feeding  which  will  insure  the  normal  exercise  of  the 
functions  of  or  relating  to  nutrition.  It  is  this  incidental  service, 
and  not  any  special  virtue  in  the  feature  or  method,  which  gives 

1  To  any  one  familiar  with  the  practice  of  many  poultry  keepers  under  many 
conditions  this  seems  the  best  explanation  of  the  fact  that  many  flocks  do 
require  very  careful  attention.  Birds  bred  for  generations  under  highly  intensive 
conditions  are,  with  rare  exceptions,  so  lacking  in  vitality  that  feeding  them  suc- 
cessfully for  any  purpose  becomes  a  system  of  dieting,  and  the  ordinary  routine 
of  caring  for  them  is  more  in  the  line  of  nursing  than  of  practical  husbandry. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  209 

value  to  many  methods  of  feeding  which  are  supposed  by  those 
using  them  to  have  peculiar  merit. 

The  condition  of  most  importance  in  relation  to  nutrition  is 
exercise.  In  a  state  of  nature  poultry  of  all  kinds  feed,  as  a  rule, 
slowly  and  continuously  for  periods  which  are  long  or  short  accord- 
ing to  the  abundance  and  variety  of  food.  Thus,  in  feeding  they 
take  a  great  deal  of  exercise,  using  up  physical  energy  and  the 
surplus  carbohydrates  and  fats  in  the  food.  Under  such  conditions 
poultry  rarely  accumulate  fat  to  such  a  degree  that  vitality  or  any 
function  is  impaired.  If  fed  with  grain  strewn  thickly  on  bare 
ground,  or  grain  or  moist  mash  in  troughs,  the  birds  can  eat  in  a 
few  minutes,  and  with  no  effort  except  for  the  taking  of  the  food, 
as  much  as  they  would  ordinarily  secure  by  foraging  for  several 
hours.  The  result  is  that  fat  is  stored  in  the  body  until  finally  it 
interferes  with  many  functions,  and  at  the  same  time,  through 
lack  of  use,  the  muscular  system  deteriorates  and  the  bird  becomes 
debilitated. 

In  every  continuous  line  of  poultry  culture,  exercise  is  necessary 
to  maintain  the  physical  vigor  of  the  stock.  Were  the  bird  a  mere 
machine,  it  might  be  possible  to  keep  it  in  working  order  by  limit- 
ing the  quantities  of  fat-producing  foods  consumed.  But  poultry 
(and  especially  the  gallinaceous  birds)  are  organisms  of  a  very  ac- 
tive habit,  requiring  a  great  deal  of  physical  exercise  to  keep  them 
in  condition,  and  even  when  all  the  food  they  consume  is  given 
them,  it  is  usually  found  better  to  supply  energy-producing  foods 
freely,  and  have  the  birds  keep  themselves  in  condition  by  exercise. 
This  practice  has  the  further  advantage  of  being  more  economical, 
for  the  non-nitrogenous  elements  are,  on  the  whole,  less  costly,  and 
a  supply  of  them  ample  for  all  purposes  insures  conservation  of 
the  more  costly  nitrogenous  elements  in  the  ration. 

The  common  method  of  providing  exercise  for  birds  (particularly 
fowls)  in  restricted  quarters  is  to  feed  the  whole  or  cracked  grains 
in  a  litter  of  straw,  leaves,  or  other  suitable  material,  from  which 
they  can  get  it  only  by  scratching. 

Objects  of  feeding  have  a  direct  bearing  on  the  selection  of  ra- 
tions and  methods  only  when  the  object  is  a  special  one  requiring 
a  special  ration,  —  and  not  always  in  such  cases,  for  occasionally  it 
happens  that  the  cheapest  food  and  the  simplest  method  will  serve 


2io  POULTRY  CULTURE 

quite  as  well  as  the  most  elaborate  plan  of  feeding  that  could  be 
devised.  This  is  most  likely  to  be  the  case  when  poultry  produced 
for  a  special  purpose  is-kept  under  very  favorable  conditions.  Many 
poultry  keepers  use  somewhat  different  rations  and  methods  of 
feeding  for  birds  destined  for  different  uses.  Thus,  in  growing 
poultry  of  all  kinds,  those  that  are  to  be  killed  as  soon  as  fit  may 
be  fed  without  regard  to  the  effects  of  heavy  feeding  and  lack  of 
exercise,  while  those  that  are  to  be  reserved  for  laying  and  breed- 
ing purposes  must  be  managed  with  care  to  secure  sound  constitu- 
tions and  good  physical  development.  Then  the  hen  that  is  to 
be  used  only  for  egg  production,  and  marketed  as  soon  as  she 
ceases  to  be  a  profitable  layer,  may  be  fed,  after  maturity,  for  heavy 
egg  production  at  the  expense  of  vitality,  while  the  hen  that  is  to 
be  used  for  breeding  purposes  must  be  fed  and  handled  with  due 
consideration  for  the  maintenance  of  constitutional  vigor. 

Conditions  are  of  more  importance  in  all  these  cases  than  the 
composition  of  the  rations.  It  is  quite  a  common  thing  to  find 
poultry  keepers  who  use  special  rations  for  special  purposes  getting 
from  two  different  rations  results  just  the  opposite  of  those  which 
the  rations  are  designed  to  produce,  —  as,  for  instance,  hens  kept 
on  a  light  or  "  maintenance  "  ration  laying  much  better  than  others 
of  the  same  stock  on  a  "  heavy  laying  "  ration. 

Rations  for  special  purposes.  Special  rations  are  necessary  only 
when  the  object  can  be  accomplished  within  a  comparatively  short 
period.  A  special  ration  for  such  use  is  properly  a  finishing  ration, 
or  a  heavy  forcing  ration,  and  its  profitable  use  is  limited  by  its 
tendency  to  put  the  birds  out  of  condition,  and  so,  if  too  long 
continued,  to  defeat  the  purpose  for  which  it  is  used.  Makers  of 
proprietary  poultry  rations  sometimes  offer  special  rations  for  almost 
every  conceivable  purpose,  their  claim  being  that  each  is  exactly 
balanced  for  its  purpose.  The  good  foods  of  this  class  (except 
fattening  rations)  are  merely  average  balanced  rations,  and  the 
differences  between  them  are  insignificant,  if  not  imaginary.  Not 
infrequently  neither  inspection,  analysis,  nor  use  will  discover  any 
difference  in  these  rations.  As  the  poultry  man  buys  them  they  are 
almost  invariably  more  expensive  than  grains,  though  the  principal 
ingredient  in  most  of  them  is  corn,  the  cheapest  grain  that  the 
poultry  man  uses.  They  often  contain  large  percentages  of  weed 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  211 

seeds,  which  the  birds  do  not  eat,  and  are  sometimes  heavily 
adulterated  with  grit.1 

The  sole  advantage  in  using  these  mixtures  is  that  the  corn  that 
they  contain  has  been  carefully  selected  and  kiln  dried,  and  is,  there- 
fore, when  the  food  is  reasonably  fresh,  a  safer  food  than  much  of 
the  cracked  corn  found  on  the  market  during  spring  and  summer. 

As  a  rule,  a  ration  adapted  to  continuous  use  for  any  purpose 
for  one  kind  of  poultry  is  adapted  to  contimious  use  for  that  kind 
of  poultry  for  all  purposes.  The  only  difference2  in  the  require- 
ments of  the  growing  chicken  and  of  the  laying  hen  are  that  the 
hen  needs  more  lime,  which  is  fed  separately.  The  only  difference 
in  the  requirements  of  the  laying  hen  and  of  the  molting  hen  is  that 
the  latter  needs  less  lime.  Between  the  requirements  of  the  molting 
hen  and  those  of  the  growing  chick  there  is  no  difference  requiring 
variation  in  rations.  Even  fattening  (as  will  be  shown  when  details 
of  feeding  are  given)  can  often  be  done  very  quickly,  with  the 
ration  slightly  modified,  by  simply  changing  the  conditions  so  that 
all  the  fat-forming  food  consumed  goes  to  fat. 

Different  rations  are  needed  for  different  kinds  of  poultry.  Yet, 
as  natural  rations  are  similar  at  many  points,  the  feeding  of  several 
different  kinds  of  poultry  does  not  require  that  every  feed  be  dif- 
ferent. In  the  use  of  mashes  especially,  the  same  mash  may3 
serve  for  all  the  common  kinds  of  poultry,  the  variations  necessary 
in  the  ration  as  a  whole  being  made  in  other  foods.  This  point 
is  of  no  particular  importance  to  specialists  growing  only  one  kind 
of  poultry  for  one  purpose.  As  a  rule,  the  great  majority  of  poultry 
keepers  find  it  more  profitable  to  keep  several  kinds  and  a  small 
stock  of  each,  and  they  save  considerable  labor  by  making  parts 
of  the  various  rations  identical.  Comparisons  of  specimen  rations 
will  show  how  far  this  may  be  done. 

1  Between  30  and  40  per  cent  of  grit  has  been  found  in  mixtures  of  grain  for 
small  chicks.    Nearly  all  mixtures  contain  some  grit  (usually  from  5  to  10  or  12  per 
cent),  though  the  chicks  do  not  need  it  at  all. 

2  That  is,  difference  which  in  the  present  state  of  knowledge  of  the  science  of 
poultry  feeding  can  be  considered  in  balancing  rations. 

3  The  conspicuous  exception  to  this  is  that  a  few  of  the  first  feeds  of  mash  for 
young  waterfowl,  and  an  occasional  feed  for  a  week  or  more,  should  have  coarse 
sand  or  fine  grit  mixed  with  the  mash.    I  am  inclined  to  think  that  in  this  case 
the  benefit  is  due  to  the  supply  of  mineral  matter  rather  than  to  that  of  a 
grinding  substance. 


212  POULTRY  CULTURE 

The  same  ration  may  be  used  for  young  and  old  poultry  of  the 
same  kind.  Young  birds  do  as  well  on  feed  given  to  old  birds  as 
on  rations  designed  especially  for  their  size  and  tender  age.  Not 
every  ration  that  might  be  used  with  good  results  for  half-grown 
and  adult  stock  is  suitable  for  small  birds,  but  a  number  of  the 
rations  in  common  use  are  suitable,  or  may  be  made  so  by  very 
slight  modification.  The  almost  universal  practice  of  babying  and 
coddling  young  poultry  has  added  greatly  to  the  trouble  and  cost 
of  rearing  them.  The  feeding  in  particular  has  often  been  made  a 
burden  by  the  use  of  methods  which  hardly  touched  at  any  point 
the  methods  used  for  adult  stock.  It  is  natural  for  the  young  of 
all  kinds  of  poultry  to  eat  from  the  first  the  same  foods  as  the 
adult  birds.  Their  ability  to  feed  themselves  from  the  start  is  one 
of  the  principal  points  determining  their  usefulness  in  domestica- 
tion. It  is  easily  demonstrated  that,  under  favorable  conditions, 
normal,  healthy  young  birds  will  thrive  on  rations  appropriate  for 
old  birds.  If  the  stock  is  weak,  or  badly  hatched  or  brooded,  or 
kept  under  unfavorable  conditions,  the  simpler  diet  and  methods 
used  for  rugged  adult  stock  may  be  insufficient,1  because,  like  de- 
bilitated adult  stock,  the  young  birds  require  dieting  and  nursing. 
Young  poultry  intended  to  be  marketed  at  a  very  early  age  (as  squab 
broilers  and  green  ducks)  can  be  brought  to  marketable  size  more 
quickly  on  a  special  ration.  This  exception  is  in  accordance  with 
the  statement  that  special  rations  are  needed  only  when  the  object 
can  be  accomplished  within  a  short  period. 

Forcing  rations.  A  forcing  ration  is  any  ration  which  furnishes 
food  in  excess  of  what  birds  would  take  of  their  own  inclination,  if 
abundantly  supplied  with  food  in  general  variety  (grain,  green  stuff, 
and  animal  food).  The  same  ration  may  be  a  forcing  ration  for  one 
bird,  not  for  another,  and  for  the  same  bird  a  forcing  ration  at  one 
time,  not  at  another.  The  most  familiar  illustrations  of  this  point 
are  found  in  the  relations  between  rations,  conditions,  and  results 
in  feeding  laying  hens  in  extreme  warm  weather  and  in  warm  winter 
weather.  In  extreme  warm  weather  hens  which  can  select  their  own 

1  Insufficient  to  keep  the  weakest  birds  alive,  or  to  secure  as  good  results  under 
the  conditions ;  but,  as  a  rule,  it  will  be  found  that  when  weak  and  debilitated 
young  poultry  are  given  natural  conditions  and  simple  diet,  those  which  survive 
the  hardening  process  develop  better  than  they  would  under  treatment  which 
brought  a  larger  proportion  to  maturity. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  213 

ration  often  eat  so  much  green  food  that  they  have  no  appetite  for 
grain  and  will  not  consume  enough  to  furnish  the  material  for 
constant  egg  production.  In  such  cases  the  only  way  to  keep  up 
egg  production  is  to  cut  off  or  diminish  the  supply  of  green  food.  In 
warm  winter  weather  the  regular  ration,  suitable  for  normal  winter 
conditions,  may  become  a  forcing  ration.  Poultry  in  winter  quar- 
ters are  rarely  supplied  with  all  the  green  food  they  will  eat.  In 
sudden  changes  from  cold  to  warm  weather  they  continue  to  eat 
the  usual  quantity  of  the  heavy  winter  ration,  and  many  birds  very 
quickly  break  down  under  it. 

Forced  feeding  is  almost  universal  among  poultrymen.1  All 
regular,  good  feeding  is  in  a  sense  forced  feeding.  Even  under 
natural  conditions,  with  opportunity  to  balance  their  own  rations, 
full-fed  poultry  develop  faster  and  better  individually,  but  at  the 
cost  of  shorter  life  and  reduction  of  vitality  in  the  offspring.  The 
poultryman's  object  is  to  get  as  much  as  possible  out  of  the  birds 
in  the  shortest  possible  time ;  that  is,  to  market  as  soon  as  possible 
those  destined  primarily  for  the  table,  and  to  keep  laying  and  breed- 
ing poultry  only  as  long  as  they  are  highly  productive.  He  forces 
by  feeding,  but  not  (intentionally)  to  the  danger  point,  just  as  a 
careful  horseman  often  drives  his  horse  much  faster  and  farther 
than  the  horse  would  go  of  its  own  accord,  yet  avoids  overdriving. 

Forced  feeding  is  done  not  only  by  increasing  the  proportions 
of  proteins  and  fats  in  rations,  but  also  by  increasing  the  quantity 
of  the  food  consumed.  In  the  cramming  method  of  fattening, 
the  birds  are  actually  forced  to  eat  larger  quantities  of  food  than 
they  would  take  for  themselves.  The  use  of  a  variety  of  foods, 
and  of  variations  in  the  form  in  which  food  is  given,  has  the 
effect  of  inducing  poultry  to  eat  more  food.  This  is  much  the 
safest  way  of  forced  feeding,  and  the  only  one  adapted  to  long 
periods.  It  may  be  carried  to  its  limits  without  perceptible  injury 
to  vigorous  birds. 

1  The  usual  declaration  of  the  poultryman  describing  methods  or  reporting 
results,  that  he  does  no  forced  feeding,  is  erroneous,  though  not  always  inten- 
tionally so.  There  is  a  great  deal  of  misconception  on  the  subject.  Some  think 
that  feeding  a  ration  in  common  use  is  not  forcing.  Some  call  feeding  animal  food 
forcing.  One  foreign  authority  on  feeding  calls  feeding  green  bone  forcing,  but 
feeding  meat  meal  not  forcing,—  a  most  absurd  distinction,  for  of  the  two  the  use 
of  meat  meal  is  attended  with  much  greater  risk. 


214  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Special  preparation  of  food  for  poultry.  With  the  exception  of 
cracked  corn  the  hard  grains  fed  to  poultry  require  no  preparation. 
Though  they  are  sometimes  mixed  before  feeding,  it  has  never 
been  shown  that  there  is  any  advantage  in  the  practice.  Ground 
grains  and  by-products  usually  require  some  preparation.  Vege- 
tables, fruits,  and  hay  are  fed  with  or  without  special  preparation, 
according  to  the  nature  of  the  article  and  to  circumstances.  In 
general,  the  poultry  keeper  who  has  reduced  the  labor  of  poultry 
keeping  to  the  minimum  does  nothing  in  preparing  food  for  the 
birds  that  they  could  do  for  themselves  without  undue  waste. 
Variations  in  this  practice  are  usually  for  economic  reasons,  econ- 
omy of  time  as  well  as  of  feed  materials  being  considered.  To 
some  extent  custom  and  habit  fix  practice,  many  continuing  to  do 
some  parts  of  their  work  by  methods  not  the  most  economical 
for  them,  though  in  general,  their  work  is  on  an  economical  basis. 

Mashes.  Ground  foods  as  fed  to  poultry  are  called  mashes.  Pri- 
marily and  properly  the  term  "  mash"  applies  to  a  moist  mixture  of 
ground  grain  stuffs,  either  raw  or  cooked.  The  term  "mash"  was 
generally  used  in  that  sense  until  a  few  years  ago,  when  the  practice 
of  feeding  these  foods  without  wetting  gained  some  popularity,  and 
the  food  in  this  form  began  to  be  called  a  dry  mash.1 

The  practice  of  feeding  mashes  possibly  arose  first  in  connection 
with  the  feeding  of  kitchen  and  table  waste  containing  large  pro- 
portions of  liquid  or  semiliquid  foods  (as  soups,  gravies,  puddings, 
etc.),  full  utilization  of  which  required  that  they  be  thickened 
with  ground  grain.  As  the  numbers  of  birds  increased  until 
the  table-waste  mash  was  insufficient,  cheap  vegetables  and  meats 
were  often  cooked  and,  with  the  water  they  were  cooked  in,  made 
the  basis  of  a  mash.  When  these  were  not  available,  mashes  were 
made  of  ground  grains  alone.  The  great  advantage  of  the  mash  of 
table  waste  was  in  the  variety  of  rich  and  palatable  foods  that  it 
added  to  the  ration.  This  advantage  is  continued  in  less  degree  in 
mashes  containing  vegetables  and  meat,  though  mashes  of  the  lat- 
ter kind  have  far  less  variety  and  are  often  altogether  lacking  in 
the  seasoning  articles,  —  salt,  pepper,  mustard,  etc.,  —  considerable 
quantities  of  which  are  in  refuse  from  the  table. 

1  The  term  "dry  mash  "  is  a  misnomer,  but  as  it  has  come  into  general  use,  it  is 
retained  to  avoid  confusion. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  215 

The  supposed  advantage  of  the  mash  (principally  of  grain)  as  it 
came  to  be  used  by  those  keeping  large  stocks  of  poultry  was  that 
the  ground  grain  furnished  food  elements  more  quickly  available 
than  those  in  the  whole  grain.  While  it  was  the  almost  universal 
practice  to  feed  mashes  in  the  morning,  the  idea  that  there  was 
a  great  advantage  in  giving  poultry  a  breakfast  that  would  be 
quickly  digested  and  assimilated  seemed  very  plausible.  When  the 
fashion  of  feeding  mash  in  the  evening  became  popular,  it  was 
found  that  as  good  results  were  obtained  by  one  method  as  by 
the  other.  Those  who  fed  mashes  at  noon  were  able  to  report 
equally  good  results.  So  common  experience  showed  that  it  made 
no  difference  at  what  time  the  mash  was  fed.  Comparisons  also 
show  that  equally  good  results  may  be  obtained,  whether  the  mash 
is  raw  (mixed  with  cold  water  or  milk),  partly  cooked  (scalded), 
or  thoroughly  cooked.  Poultry  seem  to  do  as  well  on  a  mash  of 
good  consistency  in  whatever  way  it  may  be  made.  Sometimes 
those  accustomed  only  to  a  mash  made  in  a  certain  way  do  not  at 
first  like  one  made  in  another  way.  It  is  possible,  too,  that  the 
digestive  organs  of  birds  accustomed  to  mashes  prepared  in  one 
of  the  ways  mentioned  do  not  immediately  adjust  themselves  to 
mashes  prepared  in  another  way. 

In  general,  the  method  of  preparing  the  mash  is  determined  by 
the  character  of  the  ingredients  used,  and  by  the  custom  or  con- 
venience of  the  feeder.  The  use  of  thoroughly  cooked  mashes 
is  decreasing,  and  the  tendency  is  to  scald  only  when  necessary 
to  give  the  mash  the  proper  consistency,  —  a  point  which  depends 
mostly  on  the  ingredients.  Thus,  a  mash  of  corn  meal  and  bran 
will  not  stick  together  unless  the  meal  is  swelled  by  scalding,  but 
if  a  sufficient  quantity  of  middlings  or  red-dog  flour  be  added,  it 
will  give  cohesive  quality  to  the  mass,  without  the  treatment  neces- 
sary to  get  that  property  immediately  from  the  corn  meal. 

Making  mashes.  A  dry  mash  is  made  by  simply  mixing  the  dry  ingredients. 
Moist  mashes  may  be  made  in  a  number  of  ways.  The  methods  of  making 
them  vary  according  to  the  degree  of  cooking  and  according  to  the  kinds  and 
proportions  of  adhesive  elements  that  the  ingredients  contain.  Leaving  out 
of  consideration  the  effects  of  cooking,  the  object  secured  by  moistening  the 
dry  ingredients  is  the  cohesion  of  the  particles  so  that  the  finely  ground  stuffs 
are  eaten  easily  and  without  waste.  This  condition  of  the  food  is  brought 
about  not  simply  by  moisture  but  by  a  proper  degree  of  moisture,  and  by  the 


216  POULTRY  CULTURE 

application  of  the  moisture  to  suit  the  condition  of  the  ingredients  used.  It  de- 
pends, first  of  all,  upon  the  presence  in  the  foodstuffs  of  a  sufficient  amount  of 
elements  having  cohesive  properties.  These  are  found  chiefly  in  the  finer  and 
heavier  ingredients  (as  meal  and  flour)  and  are  lacking  in  such  foods  as  pure 
bran  and  finely  ground  or  cut  hay.  In  any  mixture,  given  a  sufficient  propor- 
tion of  foodstuffs  having  cohesive  properties,  the  development  of  a  cohesive 
condition  of  the  mixture  requires  that  there  be  added  to  it  only  as  much  water 
as  is  necessary  to  establish  cohesion.  If  an  excess  of  water  be  added,  the 
adhesive  elements  are  too  much  diluted  and  so  fail  to  hold  the  mass  together, 
and  it  becomes  sloppy.  If  the  proportion  of  adhesive  elements  is  very  large, 
the  mass,  though  containing  too  much  water,  still  holds  together  as  a  soggy 
dough.  A  mash  that  is  merely  sloppy  is  usually  unpalatable  and  not  so  readily 
eaten  by  poultry  as  a  mash  of  better  consistency  ;  it  adheres  to  the  feed  troughs 
and  so  may  give  as  much  waste  as  a  dry  mixture.  A  soggy,  doughy  mash  is 
very  indigestible. 

The  adhesive  materials  commonly  used  in  mashes  are  corn  meal,  shorts 
(proper),  red-dog  flour,  low-grade  flour,  and  ground  oats.  The  adhesive  prop- 
erties of  corn  meal  can  be  developed  instantly  only  by  scalding,  —  wetting 
with  boiling  water.  They  are  most  pronounced  in  corn  meal  of  good  quality. 
The  adhesive  qualities  of  wheat  and  oat  products  may  be  developed  quickly 
by  wetting  with  cold  water.  Hence,  a  mash  of  corn  meal  and  bran  can  be 
made  of  the  proper  consistency  only  by  scalding  or  cooking,  while  a  mash 
composed  largely  of  corn  meal  may  be  given  the  desired  consistency  without 
cooking,  by  the  addition  of  one  of  the  glutinous  wheat  products  in  sufficient 
quantity. 

When  corn  meal  is  to  be  scalded  it  is  advisable  to  scald  it  separately, 
making  a  stiff  mush,  and  then  stir  in  the  other  ingredients.  If  vegetables, 
clover,  or  hay  are  cooked  for  the  mash,  enough  water  may  be  added  to  them 
to  scald  the  required  quantity  of  meal ;  after  the  vegetables  are  cooked,  and 
while  the  water  is  boiling,  the  meal  should  be  stirred  in  and  then  the  other 
ingredients.  When  the  mash  is  mixed  cold,'  the  meals  may  be  mixed  before 
wetting.  If  a  scalded  mash  turns  out  too  crumbly  because  of  a  poor  scald,  or 
because  of  the  addition  of  too  much  bran,  the  fault  may  be  corrected  by  adding 
water  and  flour  until  the  desired  consistency  is  obtained. 

Oatmeal  and  ground  oats  work  better  when  scalded,  but  will  work  up 
better  with  cold  water  than  corn  meal.  When  milk,  either  cold  or  scalding, 
is  used  for  mixing  mashes,  less  cohesive  material  is  needed  in  the  mash  than 
when  it  is  mixed  with  water  under  the  same  conditions.  Good  beef  scraps 
and  animal  meals  have  highly  cohesive  properties,  which  develop  quickly  by 
scalding  and  more  slowly  when  wet  with  cold  water.  Soaked  overnight  with 
a  sufficient  amount  of  water  they  swell  enormously,  and  a  good  mash  may  be 
made  by  soaking  them  thus  in  a  pail  or,  if  a  large  quantity  is  to  be  used,  in  a 
mixing  trough  or  box,  then  mixing  in  the  grains  in  the  morning.  If  preferred, 
they  can  of  course  be  soaked  all  day  and  the  mash  mixed  in  the  evening.  The 
amount  of  water  required  varies  and  must  be  determined  by  experiment. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  217 

Infertile  eggs  and  eggs  dying  in  early  stages  of  incubation  may  be  used  in 
mashes.  All  sorts  of  juicy  and  pulpy  vegetable  and  fruit  refuse  may  be  used 
freely  in  mashes  by  mixing  with  them  the  kinds  of  ground  foods  required  to 
give  them  proper  consistency. 

Small  quantities  of  mash  may  be  mixed  in  a  pail  with  an  iron  spoon  or  with 
a  paddle,  but  for  more  than  five  or  six  quarts  it  will  be  found  easier  and  more 
satisfactory  to  use  a  mixing  box  and  mix  with  a  spade.  In  this  way  the  mixing 
is  more  quickly  and  thoroughly  done,  and  a  much  smaller  proportion  of  water 
is  required. 

Standard  mashes.  While  the  composition  of  mashes  in  use 
among  good  poultrymen  varies  somewhat,  the  differences  in  pro- 
portions are  largely  influenced  and  offset  by  differences  in  other 
parts  of  the  ration  or  by  differences  in  conditions.  For  convenience 
of  description  and  comparison  three  standard  mashes  may  be 
taken:  (i)  a  standard  grain  mash,  made  of  ground  grains  ex- 
clusively ;  (2)  a  standard  gram  and  meat  mash,  like  the  first 
with  the  addition  of  meat  scrap  or  meat ;  (3)  a  standard  complete 
mash,  containing  ground  grain,  meat,  and  vegetable  foods  in  such 
proportions  that  it  furnishes  enough  of  these  elements  to  keep  the 
birds  in  good  condition,  if  not  as  much  as  they  would  take  if  fully 
supplied  and  selecting  their  own  ration.  The  proportions  given 
are  by  measure. 

1.  Standard  grain  mash.    I  part  corn  meal,  2  parts  wheat  bran. 

2.  Standard  grain  and  meat  mash.     I  part  corn  meal,  2  parts 
wheat  bran,  5  per  cent  of  beef  scrap  or  animal  meal  added. 

3 .  Standard  complete  mash,    i  part  corn  meal,  I  part  wheat  bran, 
i  part  vegetables,  5  per  cent  of  beef  scrap  or  animal  meal  added. 

NOTE.  Supposing  each  of  these  mashes  fed  to  adult  birds  once  a  day  (all 
that  the  birds  will  eat):  Mash  No.  i  requires  with  it  hard  grain  and  animal  and 
vegetable  food ;  Mash  No.  2,  hard  grain  and  vegetable  food  ;  Mash  No.  3,  hard 
grain.  The  mash  appropriate  at  any  time  and  place  depends  upon  how  far  the 
requirements  of  the  birds  are  supplied  outside  of  the  mash,  and  whether  it  is 
more  economical  and  convenient  to  supply  animal  and  vegetable  foods  in  the 
mash  or  separately.  The  mashes  described  represent  the  minimum  requirements 
under  ordinary  conditions.  The  use  of  whichever  of  these  is  appropriate 
should  give  good  results,  though  not,  perhaps,  the  best  possible  results.  All 
are  rather  light,  safe  mashes  which,  if  properly  mixed,  may  be  fed  freely. 
They  are  often  improved  by  the  addition  of  other  articles,  as  noted  in 
examples  to  follow ;  but  with  other  parts  of  the  ration  as  indicated,  markedly 
bad  or  poor  results  could  not  be  due  to  feeding.  Nos.  i  and  2  make  good  dry 
mashes  for  birds  otherwise  full  fed.  No.  3  is  not  adapted  to  dry  feeding. 


218  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Popular  standard  mashes  approximately  chemically  balanced 
rations.  Since  the  common  whole  grains  have  very  nearly  the 
nutrient  ratio  of  a  standard  ration,  the  ratio  of  nutrients  in  the 
mashes  fed  with  them  should  be  about  the  same.  Wide  variations 
(amounting  to  errors)  from  common  nutrient  standards  in  the  mash 
cannot  be  corrected  in  the  hard  grains  of  the  ration,  but  must  be 
corrected  either  in  the  mash  or  by  furnishing  special  supplies  of 
foods  of  the  required  character.  The  use  of  mashes  —  and  espe- 
cially of  wet  mashes  mixed  from  day  to  day  as  used,  and  varied 
in  composition  according  to  the  judgment  of  a  skillful  feeder  — 
gives  opportunity  to  use  to  full  advantage  many  waste  products  or 
cheap  food  products,  to  add  to  the  variety  of  the  ration  by  occa- 
sional changes  in  the  ingredients,  composition,  and  consistency  of 
the  mash,  and,  when  desired,  to  make  quick  modifications  of  the 
whole  ration  without  changing  other  parts  of  it.  The  mash  used 
in  this  way  gives  the  greatest  possible  flexibility  to  a  ration.  Con- 
sidering results  without  reference  to  cost  of  labor,  it  is  generally 
agreed  that  a  skilled  feeder  can  get  better  actual  results  by  using 
wet  mashes  than  it  is  possible  to  get  in  any  other  way.  As  to  the 
advantage  of  using  wet  mashes  when  labor  is  considered,  there  is 
less  unanimity  of  opinion. 

Errors  in  the  use  of  wet  mashes.  The  wet  mash,  being  capable 
of  great  variation  in  composition  and  consistency,  may  become  a 
dangerous  factor  in  the  hands  of  an  unskillful  or  of  a  careless 
feeder.  The  greatest  risks  attend  the  misuse  of  the  mash  in  feed- 
ing poultry  lacking  in  vitality  and  digestive  power.  Such  birds  may 
be  very  seriously  affected  by  sloppy,  doughy,  or  sour  mashes  when 
rugged  birds  would  eat  them  with  impunity. 

Dry  mashes.  Dry  mashes  came  into  use  because  of  the  diffi- 
culties that  many  poultry  keepers  experienced  in  using  wet  mashes, 
and  because  of  the  apparent  saving  of  labor  in  preparing  and  the 
greater  convenience  (in  many  instances)  in  feeding  them. 

Personal  estimates  of  the  value  of  dry  mashes,  as  of  all  features  in 
feeding,  are  usually  based  on  a  comparison  of  the  results  of  feeding 
dry  mashes  with  the  results  secured  by  the  same  person  without 
them,  rather  than  on  comparisons  with  any  general  standards  of 
results,  or  with  the  net  results  of  .the  various  changes  in  items 
affecting  the  cost  of  handling  poultry  which  the  use  of  a  dry  mash 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  219 

introduces.  On  the  whole,  the  dry  mash  has  not  the  advantage  as 
a  labor  saver  claimed  by  those  who  exploit1  it,  though  there  are 
features  of  its  use  which  often  give  it  a  very  distinct  advantage.2 
These  are  : 

1.  Convenience.    Though  it  deteriorates  with  age,  a  dry  mash 
does  not  spoil  so  quickly  as  moist  mashes  do.    Hence  it  may  be  fed 
in  hoppers  always  accessible  to  the  birds,  and  the  supply  may  be 
replenished  at  any  convenient  time,  —  at  intervals  of  a  few  days,  a 
week,  or  even  longer,  according  to  the  capacity  of  the  hopper  and 
the  size  of  the  flock. 

2.  Full  feeding.    In  the  hands  of  an  inexpert  feeder  a  dry  mash 
of  the  right  composition,    kept  constantly  before  the  birds,  will 
almost  invariably  give  better  results  than  a  wet  mash,  provided 
the  same  hard  grains  are  given  with  the  dry  as  would  be  given 
with  the  wet  mash.   If  (as  is  often  the  case)  an  effort  is  made  to 
compel  the  birds  to  consume  certain  considerable  quantities  of  the 
dry-mash  mixture  by  reducing  the  grain  until  they  will  eat  the  de- 
sired quantity  of  the  dry  mash,  the  results  are  likely  to  be  disap- 
pointing, for  the  birds  do  not  like  dry  mashes  well  enough  to  eat 
them  freely,  and  are  likely  to  be  underfed.   With  a  sufficient  supply 
of  hard  grain  the  dry  mash  becomes  a  supplementary  feed,  not 

1  It  is  doubtful  whether  dry-mash  feeding  would  have  become  prominent  among 
poultry  methods  but  for  the  advertising  of  trade  mixtures  represented  as  special 
balanced  rations  for  various  purposes.    For  several  years  after  dry  mashes  began 
to  be  exploited  in  the  poultry  press,  it  was  noticeable  that  those  advocating  and 
reporting  remarkable  results  by  their  use  were,  almost  without  exception,  directly 
or  indirectly  interested  in  the  sale  either  of  dry  mashes  or  of  hoppers  to  contain 
them,  and  this  method  is  still  very  much  dependent  on  the  advertising  of  interested 
parties  for  the  attention  that  it  gets.   The  fact  does  not  condemn  the  method,  but 
it  must  be  considered  in  estimating  its  actual  value  and  status.    Usually  the  com- 
plete "  balanced  ration  "  is  procured  by  buying  a  mixture  of  hard  grains  from  the 
same  concern.    Many  of  these  feeds  make  good  rations,  but  as  many  advertisers 
labor,  with  some  measure  of  success,  to  convince  customers  that  they  must  have 
these  preparations  and  none  other,  it  not  infrequently  happens  that  a  poultry 
keeper  short  of  a  supply  of  his  favorite  commercial  ration  puts  his  birds  on  short 
allowance  of  it  rather  than  take  chances  of  spoiling  the  supposed  exactly  balanced 
ration,  the  "  formula  "   for  which  is  the  proprietor's  "  secret." 

2  In  correspondence  with  a  large  number  of  poultry  keepers  using  dry  mashes, 
I  was  surprised  to  find  a  large  proportion  of  them  not  making  use  of  the  advan- 
tages of  the  method.    Many  fed  dry  mash  in  limited  quantities,  giving  it  daily. 
Many  fed  both  wet  and  dry  mashes,  this  practice  actually  making  more  labor  than 
when  the  dry  mash  was  not  used. 


220  POULTRY  CULTURE 

attractive  in  form  yet  fed  in  such  a  manner  that  it  may  be  eaten 
quite  rapidly.  Being  always  before  the  birds,  it  gives  the  weaker 
ones  and  the  slow  feeders  an  opportunity  to  eat  all  they  want ;  be- 
ing unattractive  in  form,  it  does  not  tempt  others  to  overeat ;  and 
so  the  food  consumption  of  the  flock  is  more  equal.  As  far  as 
growth  and  production  are  concerned,  full  feeding,  uniform  through- 
out the  flock,  is  the  principal  advantage  in  the  use  of  the  dry  mash. 
Dangers  in  the  use  of  dry  mashes.  Ground  grains  fed  to  poultry 
in  a  dry  state  have  a  marked  costive  property.  If  the  remainder  of 
the  ration  is  too  laxative  for  general  use  or  for  birds  with-  a  ten- 
dency to  looseness  of  the  bowels,  an  appropriate  quantity  of  dry 
ground  foods  may  be  a  corrective  or  preventive  of  diarrhea.  Under 
any  other  conditions  a  dry  mash  may  be  too  constipating.  The 
costive  property  of  dry  mashes  is  particularly  dangerous  when  a 
mash  contains  a  high  percentage  of  animal  food  or  other  substance 
rich  in  protein  or  fat,  because  it  may  prevent  the  slight  diarrhea 
which  would  give  immediate  warning  of  the  injurious  effects  due  to 
an  excess  of  concentrated  food.  Makers  of  commercial  dry  mashes 
take  advantage  of  this  to  use  in  their  mixtures  large  proportions 
of  highly  concentrated  foods  (not  always  of  good  quality),  which 
stimulate  for  a  time  but  in  the  end  bring  about  the  usual  results  of 
too  heavy  feeding  of  such  articles.  The  tendency  to  produce  con- 
stipation may  be  offset  by  the  liberal  use  of  succulent  foods,  and 
by  feeding  hard  grain  so  freely  that  the  consumption  of  mash  is 
small.  The  danger  due  to  excess  of  concentrates  is  avoided  by  the 
feeder  mixing  the  mashes  himself  and  limiting  the  percentage  of 
concentrates,  or  it  may  be  greatly  decreased  by  free  feeding  in 
other  parts  of  the  ration. 

EXAMPLES   OF   RATIONS 

Of  the  examples  of  rations  which  follow,  some  are  common  rations  in  gen- 
eral use  among  practical  poultry  feeders  who  have  worked  them  out  in  practice, 
without  considering  their  chemical  elements,  —  often  without  acquaintance  with 
the  science  of  feeding.  Rations  of  this  kind  can  rarely  be  accurately  described. 
Each  one  who  uses  them  knows  about  what  quantities  of  different  ingredients 
he  uses,  but  few  know  exact  quantities  and  proportions,  and  the  more  skillful 
a  feeder  is,  the  greater  and  more  frequent  are  his  variations  from  the  standard 
which  would  express  the  general  average  of  his  rations.  The  skillful  feeder 
comes,  in  time,  to  have  a  nice  judgment  in  varying  rations  to  suit  conditions, 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  221 

and,  to  break  the  monotony  of  the  usual  routine  of  eating,  will  often,  for  brief 
periods,  make  very  radical  departures  from  his  usual  practice.  Thus  he  gives 
at  one  time  a  very  rich  mash,  at  another  time  a  very  light  one ;  but  he  selects 
the  time  for  such  changes  with  judgment,  with  a  thorough  knowledge  of  his 
stock,  and  with  an  eye  to  the  effect  of  the  change  on  the  general  ration.  Some 
persons  using  approximately  a  common  ration  can  describe  their  own  ration 
exactly.  Two  or  more  persons  approximating  a  common  standard,  but  with 
different  variations,  may  each  suppose  his  the  better  ration.  Usually  in  such 
cases  the  rations  are  of  equal  value,  the  differences  being  immaterial  either  in 
themselves  or  because  of  modifying  circumstances. . 

All  rations  in  common  use  have  wide  adaptability.  The  kinds  most  useful 
for  examples  are  those  used  at  the  various  experiment  stations.  These  are 
more  accurately  described  than  most  of  the  rations  used  elsewhere,  and  the  re- 
sults of  using  them  are  more  fully  stated,  in  reports  of  regular  work,  as  well  as 
in  reports  of  special  experiments.  The  rations  selected  for  examples  are  not  all 
good.  The  poor  ration  is  sometimes  valuable  for  purposes  of  illustration. 

Examples  of  all  kinds  of  rations  are  given  and  discussed  as  far  as  seems  to 
serve  the  general  purpose  of  giving  a  comprehensive  understanding  of  the 
subject  of  feeding. 

The  examples  are  arranged  (i)  according  to  the  character  of  the  rations, — 
first  growing  (including  producing],  \her\Jimshtng,  or  fattening]  (2)  according 
to  the  kind  of  poultry  for  which  they  are  used ;  (3)  to  show  the  sequence  of 
rations  used  in  a  system  or  in  a  certain  practice. 

Quantities  are  by  measure  except  as  otherwise  stated.1 


RATIONS  FOR  FOWLS  — ALL  AGES 

1 .  For  young  chickens  on  good  range.    Cracked  Corn  and  water. 

This  method  of  feeding  young  chickens  was  used  for  years  by  a  farmer  in 
Massachusetts,  who  grew  each  season  about  five  hundred  White  Wyandottes  to 
keep  up  his  stock  of  laying  hens.  The  range  was  in  orchard  and  later  in  the 
season  over  mowing  land,  supplying  abundance  of  green  food  but  not  of  animal 
food.  The  ration  was  defective.  Chickens  grown  in  this  way  deteriorated  in  size, 
but  the  average  size  of  stock  was  maintained  at  a  little  below  the  average  for 
Wyandottes  by  using  for  sires  large  males  from  other  flocks.  This  farmer  also 
engaged  quite  extensively  in  gardening.  His  method  of  handling  his  chickens 
was  developed  because  it  was  not  possible  for  him,  without  neglecting  other  in- 
terests, to  give  them  the  time  and  attention  that  more  elaborate  methods  required. 

2.  For  young  chickens  on  good  range.    Mash  (table  scraps  mixed,  cold, 
with  corn  meal,  shorts,  and  bran,  equal  parts)  once  a  day;  cracked  corn  in 
troughs  or  hoppers  before  the  birds  at  all  times. 

1  In  common  practice  it  is  more  convenient  to  mix  feeds  by  measure  than  by 
weight.  When  large  quantities  are  mixed  it  is  usual  to  measure  by  the  bag&&&  part  of 
a  bag.  Then  the  mixing  is  still  by  measure,  but  the  weights  of  measures  of  "various 
ingredients  are  known.  In  experimental  work  parts  are  usually  given  by  weight. 


222  POULTRY  CULTURE 

The  chickens  in  this  case  were  kept  in  an  orchard,  about  seventy-five 
chickens  having  the  range  of  about  an  acre  of  land.  As  the  chicks  grew,  the 
allowance  of  mash  for  each  was  quite  small,  but  this  was  made  up  in  the  waste 
apples  falling  from  the  trees.  Under  the  conditions  the  ration  was  ample, 
securing  the  full  development  of  the  birds.  Practically  the  same  results  would 
be  secured  by  feeding  any  good  mash  in  place  of  that  used. 

3.  For  chickens  {for  market}  in  brooder  houses  and  on  poor  range  from 
weaning  to  maturity.    Cracked  corn  and  beef  scrap  always  before  them  in 
separate  hoppers ;  limited  pasture  of  winter  rye ;  occasional  feeds  of  cabbage. 

This  is  the  ration  in  common  use  among  the  soft-roaster  growers  of  eastern 
Massachusetts,  from  the  time  when  the  chickens  leave  the  brooder  houses.  The 
supply  of  green  food  is  usually  much  less  than  the  birds  would  take.  The  ration 
is  a  fattening  one  and  does  not,  as  a  rule,  secure  the  fullest  development  (growth) 
of  the  birds,  but  in  some  cases  remarkably  large,  fine  birds  are  produced.  The 
birds  are  not  confined,  but  the  range  after  the  early  part  of  the  season  affords 
scant  picking.  They  take  only  exercise  enough  to  keep  digestion  good,  and  be- 
come as  fat  as  the  American  market  requires,  without  any  addition  to  this  ration. 

4.  For  young  chickens.    Baked  "johnnycake"  (or  any  similar  cake)  fed  as 
often  daily  as  desired,  either  without  hard  grains  or  in  alternation  with  them. 
Fine  table  scraps  and  infertile  eggs  may  be  mixed  in  johnnycake,  making  it 
a  more  complete  ration.    To  make  such  a  cake,  add  a  little  soda  to  sour  milk, 
put  in  the  scraps  finely  broken  and  the, eggs  (including  shell),  stir  in  coarse 
corn  meal  to  make  a  very  stiff  batter,  bake  well. 

This  is  a  convenient  way  of  providing  the  "soft"  food  for  small  flocks  of 
chicks  in  a  form  in  which  it  may  be  kept  in  good  condition  for  a  number  of  days. 
Clean,  sweet  table  scraps  (broken  small)  and  infertile  eggs  (with  shells)  may  be 
mixed  in  the  batter  and  baked,  making  the  cake  a  complete  ration,  except  for 
the  green  food.  Chicks  on  young  grass  can  get  all  the  green  food  that  they  need 
for  themselves.  Chicks  in  confinement  will  do  very  well  on  this  cake  alone  for 
a  while,  but  are  better  for  regular  supplies  of  green  food.  After  a  few  weeks 
chicks  which  do  not  get  green  food  begin  to  show  lack  of  development.  Some 
poultry  keepers  bake  cakes  for  quite  large  numbers  of  young  chickens,  but  it  is 
neither  necessary  nor  economical  to  do  so. 

5 .  For  young  chickens  on  good  range.   Mash  in  the  morning ;  cracked  corn  at 
9.30  A.M.  ;  cracked  corn,  whole  wheat,  or  mash  at  2  P.M.  ;  cracked  corn  at  6  P.M. 

The  difference  between  this  and  example  3  is  only  in  the  method  of  feeding, 
the  grains  (and  sometimes  one  mash  feed)  being  given,  in  about  such  quantities 
as  are  required,  at  stated  times.  This  is  often  advisable  for  small  lots  of  chicks 
when  keeping  supplies  of  food  before  them  attracts  pigeons  or  sparrows.  Some 
poultry  keepers  who  grow  large  numbers  of  chicks  also  prefer  to  give  regular 
feeds,  especially  if  the  conditions  are  not  favorable  to  exercise  or  if  it  seems 
advisable  to  keep  quite  close  oversight  of  the  stock. 

6.  For  weaned  chicks  and  fowls  on  good  range.    Mash  in  the  morning ; 
cracked  corn  or  any  grain  or  mixture  of  grains  desired, —  a  day's  allowance 
scattered  broadcast  over  the  range ;  mash  in  the  evening. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  223 

This  is  one  of  the  simplest  and  most  satisfactory  ways  of  feeding  stock  birds 
in  summer,  to  develop  frame  and  muscle  and  constitution  in  the  young  and  to 
keep  the  adults  in  good  condition.  The  grain  may  be  -scattered  in  grass  several 
inches  high  or  in  brush.  The  birds  will  get  it  all  and  require  no  attention 
from  morning  until  evening. 

7.  For  fowls  in  houses  with  littered  floors.  Mash  once  a  day  (morning, 
noon,  or  night) ;  the  day's  allowance  of  grain  (any  common  grain  or  mixture) 
scattered  in  the  litter  at  any  time  of  day.  Cabbage  or  mangels  before  the 
fowls  at  all  times. 

This  is  example  6  adapted  to  winter  conditions.  In  summer  the  feeding 
may  be  done  at  any  time  of  day,  but  usually  morning  and  evening  are  more 
convenient.  In  winter  it  is  often  an  advantage  to  give  the  food  at  noon 
or  in  the  evening.  If  the  quantity  of  litter  on  the  floor  is  sufficient,  and 
the  grain  is  well  concealed,  there  is  no  objection  to  giving  the  grain  and  mash 
at  the  same  time.  As  a  rule,  the  birds  will  eat  the  mash  first.  They  may 
pick  up  a  little  of  the  grain  at  that  time,  but  most  of  it  is  left  until  they  are 
hungry  again. 

8.  For  brooder  chicks.    Start  the  chicks  on  commercial  mixtures,  given 
five  or  even  six  times  a  day  in  troughs,  with  occasionally  a  feed  of  beef  scrap 
instead.    After  the  first  few  days,  give  two  or  three  of  the  feeds  of  dry  mash 
(two  parts  shorts,  or  mixed  feed,  to  one  part  corn  meal)  by  measure.    After  the 
chicks  are  three  or  four  weeks  old  the  commercial  mixture  is  discontinued, 
and  the  ration  consists  of  dry  mash  and  beef  scraps,  and  a  "  scratch  feed  "  con- 
sisting of  one  part  hulled  oats,  one  part  cracked  wheat,  and  two  parts  cracked 
corn.   This,  with  green  food  as  available,  is  continued  until  the  chicks  are  about 
ten  or  twelve  weeks  old. 

This  is  the  ration  used  by  a  soft-roaster  grower  up  to  the  time  when  his 
chickens  go  into  the  colony  houses  and  are  given  the  ration  in  example  3. 
Frequent  feeding  is  advisable  when  chicks  are  kept  in  large  numbers  under 
artificial  conditions.  This  is  to  keep  them  occupied  and  to  prevent  the  develop- 
ment of  vices  and  the  soiling  of  the  food  (on  the  floor  or  in  shallow  troughs) 
rather  jthan  because  (as  is  commonly  supposed)  the  chicks  need  feed  so  often. 
By  feeding  often,  and  feeding  a  considerable  amount  of  soft  foods  and  concen- 
trated foods,  little  chicks  grow  faster  at  first,  up  to  about  ten  or  twelve  weeks. 
After  that  those  brought  up  on  three  or  four  meals  a  day,  of  which  a  large  per- 
centage is  hard  grain,  will  usually  outgrow  them,  because  they  have  better 
digestion  and  greater  vitality.  The  use  of  commercial  mixtures  does  not  always 
indicate  that  the  feeder  regards  them  as  better  than  corn  or  than  such  a  mix- 
ture as  he  might  make  himself.  Some  do  prefer  certain  brands,  but  it  is  not 
unusual  for  manufacturers  to  offer  inducements  to  poultry  growers  of  reputa- 
tion to  use  some  of  their  feeds,  if  only  a  few  bags  annually.  In  the  above 
ration,  feeding  is  not  reduced  to  the  simplest  form,  as  it  is  in  the  rations  used 
by  the  growers  in  this  section  for  the  weaned  chicks. 

9.  For  laying  stock  on  good  range.     Mash,  corn  meal,  bran,  and  beef 
scrap  in  varying  proportions,  from  one  third  to  one  half  of  the  ground  grains 


224  POULTRY  CULTURE 

(by  measure),  corn  meal,  and  from  5  to  10  per  cent  of  the  total  beef  scrap  or 
animal  meal ;  cooked  overnight ;  fed  in  the  morning ;  grain  in  hoppers  acces- 
sible at  all  times. 

This  is  the  method  of  the  colony  poultry-farming  district  of  Rhode  Island. 
Different  poultry  keepers  here  vary  the  proportions  of  ingredients  in  the 
mash,  often  according  to  habit  or  individual  custom  rather  than  on  judg- 
ment. Cracked  corn  is  the  principal  grain  fed.  Mixtures  of  grains  are  some- 
times used,  or  variety  may  be  introduced  by  occasionally  filling  a  grain  hopper 
with  wheat  or  oats.  The  point  of  chief  interest  in  connection  with  practice  in 
this  district  is  the  general  uniformity  of  results  in  spite  of  considerable  super- 
ficial differences  in  feeding  practice,  and  the  generally  good  condition  of  the 
stock  in  spite  of  features  of  feeding  which,  under  less  favorable  conditions,  are- 
apt  to  cause  trouble.  To  illustrate :  One  may  find  one  farmer  feeding  to  young 
chickens,  goslings,  and  ducklings  a  very  carefully  made  and  cooked  mash, 
his  next  neighbor  feeding  a  very  carelessly  compounded,  sloppy  mash,  and  all 
the  youngsters  thrifty.1  The  general  conditions  and  the  abundance  of  other 
food  reduce  the.  advantage  of  careful,  and  minimize  the  ill  effects  of  careless, 
feeding.  Data  for  close  comparisons  of  results  and  profits  are  not  obtainable, 
but  it  is  easily  seen  that  some  of  the  most  prosperous  poultry  keepers  in  the 
Rhode  Island  district  would  soon  put  themselves  out  of  business  if  they  should 
undertake  to  apply  their  feeding  practice  under  intensive  conditions. 

MAINE  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  RATIONS 

Examples  10-16  give  the  various  rations  used  at  the  Maine  Experiment 
Station. 

10.  For  young  chickens  in  brooders.  For  the  first  two  or  three  days,  infer- 
tile eggs  boiled  for  half  an  hour,  ground  (shell  and  all)  in  a  meat  chopper  and 
rubbed  together  with  about  six  times  their  bulk  of  rolled  oats,  and  fed  with 
chick  grit  on  the  brooder  floor.  About  the  third  day  the  following  mixture  of 
small  broken  grains  is  given : 

Parts  by 
weight 

Cracked  wheat 15 

Pinhead  oat  meal     .     .    .    . ' .' . ' '•. • .'.    .  "."".    . '•  *    .    '-.    .    .    .    .  10 

Fine  cracked  corn   .    .    .    .  '.*    ....   V 15 

Fine  cracked  peas .."'-«    .' 3 

Broken  rice '  .    > 2 

Chick  grit    .    .    ,    .    .    »..<...:;.;/.    .......  5 

Fine  charcoal .;....* 2 

1  In  a  trip  through  this  district  in  May,  1911,3  number  of  the  farmers  whom  I  met 
complained  to  me  that  rations  always  before  satisfactory  did  not  seem  to  agree 
with  young  chickens,  geese,  and  ducks.  This  is  easily  explained.  Both  the  spring 
and  the  preceding  winter  were  bad  seasons  for  poultry.  Consequently,  the  stock 
was  weakened  and  the  young  birds  could  not  stand  errors  in  their  diet  which, 
under  more  favorable  circumstances,  had  produced  no  ill  effects. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING 


225 


This  is  fed  at  daylight  in  such  quantity  that  the  chicks  will  be  hungry  for  a 
nine  o'clock  feed  of  the  boiled-egg  and  rolled-oat  mixture.'  At  1 2.30  the  hard- 
•  grain  mixture  is  fed  again ;  at  4.30  or  5  the  egg-and-oat  mixture. 

When  the  chicks  are  about  three  weeks  old  the  following  wet  mash  is 
substituted  for  the  egg-and-oat  mixture: 

Parts  by 
weight 

Wheat  bran  (clean) 2 

Corn  meal      . 4 

Middlings  or  red-dog  flour 2 

Linseed  meal --.    . i 

Beef  scrap 2 

This  mixture  is  slightly  moistened  with  water  and  fed  in  troughs.  When 
the  chicks  are  five  or  six  weeks  old  the  fine-grain  mixture  is  discontinued  and 
the  feeds  given  in  the  litter  are  wheat  and  fine  cracked  corn. 

This  ration  and  the  method  of  using  it  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  practice 
with  brooder  chicks.  The  frequent  feedings  appear  to  be  necessary  when 
chicks  are  kept  in  large  groups  (from  fifty  to  one  hundred  or  more  in  each  brooder 
or  section)  under  artificial  conditions.  In  the  prevailing  view  the  danger  of 
keeping  food  by  them  is  the  danger  of  overfeeding.  It  is  more  likely  that  the 
true  causes  of  the  disorders  that  sometimes  result  from  that  practice,  in  the 
conditions  under  consideration,  are  slow  poisoning  through  eating  food  soiled 
by  the  excrement  of  the  birds,  weak  constitutions  or  weak  digestion  requiring 
dieting,  and  the  concentrated  nature  of  the  mashes  used.  In  this  case  the  egg- 
and-oat  combination  is  a  very  rich  food ;  so  is  the  mash  with  every  ingredient 
but  wheat  bran  (two  elevenths  of  the  whole)  a  heavy  food.  Wrong  tempera- 
tures in  brooders  are  also  often  responsible  for  troubles  for  which  the  food  is 
blamed.  In  using  rations  of  this  kind  it  is  not  essential  that  the  proportions 
of  different  ingredients  be  carefully  adjusted.  It  is  not  always  certain  that 
all  the  foods  in  a  hard-grain  mixture  like  this  are  eaten.  Comparison  of 
results  with  simpler  rations  indicates  an  equal  feeding  value  for  rations  con- 
taining fewer  articles.  Many  poultry  keepers  prefer  to  feed  such  foods  as 
peas,  rice,  millet,  etc.  in  small  quantities  separately,  so  that  they  may  observe 
just  how  they  are  eaten,  and  feed  accordingly.  Grit  and  charcoal  are  usually 
given  separately  in  small  troughs  or  hoppers.  As  has  been,  stated,  the  necessity 
of  these  food  accessories  is  doubtful.  It  is  certain  that  they  are  not  required 
regularly  in  the  proportions  here  used. 

ii.  For  young  chickens  in  brooders.  Same  as  above,  except  that  fine  beef 
scrap  is  substituted  for  eggs  in  the  oat  mixture  and  the  mash  used  is  a  dry 
mash  of  the  following  composition :  Parts , 

weight 

Rolled  oats 2 

Wheat  bran   . 2 

Corn  meal 2 

Linseed  meal 2 

Beef  scrap     ....'..    *.  •    « I 


226  POULTRY  CULTURE 

12.  For  young  chickens  in  brooders.    Same  as  above,  except  that  the  first 
mash  for  the  chicks  is  compounded  as  follows : 

Parts  by 
weight 

Wheat  bran      .  .  •'•.-.    ;•  ';"'•»•    .    .    .-    .  'V'    .'••.'';-  ...    .    .  4 

•Corn  meal    .    .  .    .  ".    .    -.-'"* .'  i    ..    .    .  3! 

Linseed  meal  .  .    ; :.-.;.-. | 

Beef  scrap        .  .    .' •-.    .   -. 2 

Alfalfa  meal     .  ,  .    .    «.    .    .    ;    . ,,.'•'••.  -.•  f    .".    .    .    .    .    .    .    .  i 

To  this  mixture  when  scalded  is  added  one  part  of  rolled  oats  to  three  parts  of 
the  mixture,  the  oats  being  added  after  scalding,  to  prevent  the  sogginess  pro- 
duced when  rolled  oats  are  scalded  in  the  mixture.  This  mash  and  the  grains 
as  in  ration  10  are  fed  until  the  chicks  are  about  three  weeks  old,  when  the 
following  mash  is  used  until  the  chicks  are  from  six  to  eight  weeks  old : 

Parts  by 

weight 

Wheat  bran ,•  ., 2 

Corn  meal ^    ........ 3 

Linseed  meal     .  • ...    ...     .  \ 

Daisy  flour     .     .     .    .    .    .    ., .    .    .  ..    .  :.'  .    .  i 

Beef  scrap     .    .    .    ...    ...,'.    .1    .    .    .    ',  ''.    .'    .    .  i 

Ration  12  is  preferred  at  the  Maine  station.  If  the  criticism  on  the  con- 
centrated nature  of  the  mash  in  ration  10  is  sound,  a  ration  preferred  to  it  in 
practice  must  be  less  concentrated.  The  first  mash  used  in  ration  1 2  has  in 
the  dry  mixture  four  elevenths  of  wheat  bran  and  one  eleventh  of  alfalfa  meal, 
a  still  more  bulky  article.  The  rolled  oats,  introduced  after  scalding,  still 
further  lightens  the  mixture,  so  that  this  mash,  as  fed,  is  only  about  half  as 
concentrated  as  that  in  ration  10. 

13.  For  young  chickens  in  brooders.    Same  as  above,  fed  later  in  the  season, 
when  the  chicks  could  get  out  on  the  ground.    The  mixture  of  grains  described 
in  10  and  the  mash  described  at  11  (fed  dry  in  troughs)  always  before  them. 

As  reported,  this  worked  well  except  in  bad  weather,  when  the  chicks 
remained  under  cover  and,  it  is  stated,  "  would  hang  around  the  troughs  and 
overeat,  would  grow  rapidly  for  a  few  days,  then  commence  to  go  lame,  eat 
little,  arid  seek  the  warm  hover  never  to  recover."  Such  a  result  is  in  accord- 
ance with  what  was  said  (p.  220)  of  the  dangers  of  dry  mashes  rich  in  concen- 
trated foods.  With  food  of  the  right  composition  and  consistency,  overfeeding 
healthy  chickens  on  a  good  range  is  practically  an  impossibility.1  In  this  case 
the  range  was  not  large  enough  to  furnish  full  supplies  of  green  and  of  animal 
food.  It  did  not  afford  the  full  advantages  of  a  range. 

1  I  think  that  it  will  be  found,  on  close  investigation,  that  this  applies  to  chicks 
under  all  conditions.  That  it  applies  to  natural  conditions  is  certain.  I  have 
not,  in  recent  years,  been  so  situated  that  I  could  test  its  application  to  arti- 
ficial conditions.  An  adequate  test  of  this  point  would  require  experiments  more 
extensive  and  elaborate  than  an  individual  poultry  keeper  can  make. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  227 

14.  For  weaned  chicks  on   range  (one  thousand  chicks  to  two  acres). 
Cracked  corn,  wheat,  cracked  bone,  and  oyster  shell  and  grit,  in  separate  slatted 
troughs,  in  constant  supply ;  also,  in  separate  trough,  the  following  dry-mash 
mixture : 

Parjs  by 
weight 

Wheat  bran x 

Corn  meal 2 

Middlings ! 

Beef  scrap T 

This  method  of  feeding  has  been  found  satisfactory  under  the  conditions 
described.  The  dry-mash  mixture  is  too  rich  for  general  use,  but  the  constant 
supply  of  cracked  corn  and  wheat,  and  the  range  conditions,  enable  the  birds 
to  balance  the  ration  : 

15.  For  laying  hens.    This  is  the  ration  first  adopted  at  the  Maine  station 
and  published  and  widely  adopted  as  a  model  ration. 

Parts  by 
weight 

Dry  mash 2 

Wheat  bran 

Corn  meal , 

Middlings       

Gluten  meal  or  brewer's  grains , 

Linseed  meal     . , 

Beef  scrap 

With  this  mash  constantly  before  them  the  hens  were  fed,  to  each  hundred 
hens,  early  in  the  morning,  4  quarts  of  whole  corn  scattered  from  six  to  eight 
inches  deep  in  the  litter,  and  at  10  A.M.,  2  quarts  of  wheat  and  2  quarts  of  oats 
in  the  litter. 

The  dry  mash  used  was  a  very  rich  one  for  any  combination,  and  far  too 
rich  to  be  given  with  such  limited  hard-grain  rations.  In  the  flocks  fed  on  this 
ration  at  the  station  and  elsewhere  cases  of  indigestion  were  numerous,  and 
the  mash  has  recently  been  modified. 

1 6.  For  pullets  just  off  range.    Hard  grains  as  above;  for  the  first  month 
(September)  in  the  laying  house,  mash  as  follows : 

Parts  by 
weight 

Bran 3 

Corn  meal " .. i 

Middlings i 

Meat  scrap i 

For  the  second  month  (October) :  Parts  by 

weight 

Bran 2 

Corn  meal      . i 

Middlings i 

Gluten  meal i 

Meat  scrap .    .    .    i 


228  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Green  food  is  supplied  in  the  form  of  sprouted  oats.  In  succeeding  months 
one  half  part  of  linseed  meal  is  added  to  the  mash  every  other  month. 

It  is  reported  that  better  results  followed  the  change  in  the  mash.  Judged 
by  conditions  in  general  feeding  practice,  the  mash  as  used  in  September  is  a 
better  mash  for  continuous  use  than  those  used  afterwards,  and  an  increase  in 
the  amount  of  hard  grain  given  would  be  likely  to  give  better  average  egg 
production,  though  it  might  reduce  the  production  of  some  of  the  heaviest 
layers.  This  ration,  even  as  modified,  is  a  very  heavy  forcing  ration. 

ONTARIO  EXPERIMENT  STATION  RATIONS 

1 7.  For  chicks  in  indoor  brooders.    Dry  mash  of  equal  parts  of  bran,  corn 
meal,  low-grade  flour,  and  middlings,  to  which  is  added  5  per  cent  of  beef 
scrap  and  a  teaspoonful  of  charcoal  to  the  gallon  of  mash.  Mixed  grains 
(cracked  wheat,  cracked  corn,  pinhead  oatmeal),  equal  parts.    Fed  in  alterna- 
tion, five  times  a  day  until  chicks  are  about  three  weeks  old,  then  three  times 
a  day  until  they  are  about  six  weeks  old,  after  which  they  are  hopper  fed.   The 
chicks  are  given  milk  to  drink  as  regularly  as  the  supply  permits.    The  milk 
is  considered  especially  valuable  in  starting  the  chicks. 

It  will  be  noted  that  this  is  a  simpler  and  much  less  concentrated  ration 
than  those  used  at  the  Maine  station.  It  should  give,  and  apparently  does 
give,  as  good  results  with  less  risk  and  perhaps  at  a  little  less  cost.  Exact  com- 
parisons of  such  points  for  different  rations  used  by  different  persons,  for  dif- 
ferent stock,  under  different  conditions  are  manifestly  impossible.  Observation 
of  the  stock  and  information  supplied  incidentally  in  reports  of  various  experi- 
ments seem  to  the  author  to  warrant  the  statements  made  as  to  value  and  cost. 

1 8.  For  chicks  on  range  (either  in  brooders  or  with  hens).    Same  as  above, 
but  fed  in  hoppers  from  the  start,  with  hulled  oats  and  wheat  substituted  for 
pinhead  oatmeal  and  cracked  wheat  after  the  first  few  weeks. 

The  range  in  this  case  is  an  exceptionally  good  one,  orchards,  cornfields, 
and  pastures  being  available  on  the  college  and  station  farm  of  over  five  hun- 
dred acres.  With  good  range  and  a  mash  not  overloaded  with  heavy  foods, 
the  hopper  feeding  of  chicks  has  been  practiced  here  for  a  number  of  years 
without  the  occurrence  of  troubles  commonly  ascribed  to  overfeeding.  Equally 
good  range  conditions  are  found  on  any  large  farm  and  on  many  small  farms. 
With  good  range  the  beef  scrap  is  not  essential,  but  at  this  station  it  is  sup- 
plied, to  make  sure  that  there  is  no  lack  of  animal  food. 

19.  Summer  ration  for  fowls  (yarded].    Dry  mash,  in  hoppers;   for  old 
hens,  wheat  bran;  for  pullets,  equal  parts  bran,  low-grade  flour,  and  barley 
chop  or  meal.    Grain  fed  twice  a  day,  wheat  in  the  morning  and  wheat  and 
barley  or  corn  in  the  evening,  corn  being  used  only  when  very  cheap. 

20.  Winter  ration  for  fowls  confined  to  the  house.    Dry  mash  as  above. 
Morning  feed,  whole  wheat  from  six  to  eight  inches  deep  in  the  litter ;  about 
noon,  a  little  more  wheat  and  whole  mangels  or  clover  hay;  about  3.30  P.M., 
wet  mash  of  boiled  vegetables,  waste  bread,  and  occasionally  kitchen  scraps 
thickened  with  the  same  meals  used  in  the  dry  mash,  about  10  per  cent  beef 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  229 

scrap  or  animal  meal  added,  except  when  green  cut  bone  is  given  as  a  separate 
feed ;  just  before  dark,  all  the  whole  corn  the  birds  will  eat. 

The  two  rations  above  used,  each  in  its  season,  make  a  good  "  system  "  for 
the  year.  The  yards  in  this  case  give  fair  foraging  conditions.  The  winters 
are  long  and  hard.  With  sufficiency  of  litter  the  labor  may  be  reduced  by 
bringing  all  feeding  but  the  mangels  and  clover  into  the  latter  part  of  the 
afternoon,  giving  all  the  wheat  at  the  same  time  as  the  whole  corn  in  winter, 
and  all  the  grain  at  one  feeding  in  summer. 

WEST  VIRGINIA  UNIVERSITY  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

RATION 

2 1 .  For  laying  hensl    Dry  mash  :  Parts  by 

weight 

Corn  meal 3^ 

Bran 5l 

Middlings 3 

Oil  meal i 

Beef  scrap 2\ 

Fed  in  hoppers  in  constant  supply.  Grain,  whole  corn  and  wheat,  in  ap- 
proximately equal  parts. 

This  ration  was  used  in  an  experiment  in  feeding  six  hundred  laying  hens 
(Leghorns)  which  returned  a  net  profit  of  almost  exactly  one  dollar  per  hen 
($602.28),  on  a  rather  low  average  egg  production  (113).  The  hens  had  free 
range  except  in  bad  weather,  and  for  green  food  had  also  ensilage,  of  which 
they  consumed  about  three  fourths  of  a  ton. 

KANSAS  AGRICULTURAL  COLLEGE  EXPERIMENT  STATION  RATIONS 

22.  For  young  chickens.    Dry  mash:  Parts  by 

weight 

Corn  meal 2 

Shorts 2- 

Bran 2 

Beef  scrap : 

Charcoal \ 

Grain  mixture  :  Parts  by 

weight 

Corn  chop  (sifted) * 

Cracked  Kafir  corn 2 

Cracked  wheat 2 

Millet     .     .    .   • I 

1  Taken  from  Bulletin  7/5*  of  the  West  Virginia  Experiment  Station.  The  de- 
scription of  the  method  of  feeding  in  the  bulletin  does  not  give  the  proportions 
of  articles  used,  but  gives  the  total  weights  of  each  consumed,  from  which  the 
proportions  work  out  approximately  as  I  give  them,  a  few  minor  items  which  do 
not  materially  affect  results  being  disregarded. 


230  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Dry  mash  kept  before  the  chicks  all  the  time.  Grain  fed  in  litter  five  times 
a  day  for  the  first  few  days,  and  after  that  three  times  a  day.  After  a  few  weeks 
whole  grains  were  substituted  for  the  cracked  grains. 

The  amount  of  charcoal  in  the  dry  mash  is  excessive,  even  granted  that 
charcoal  is  necessary;  compare  6  per  cent  of  charcoal  with  the  amounts  used 
in  the  Maine 'and  Ontario  rations.  The  proportion  of  beef  scrap  is  greater 
than  is  advisable.  The  ration  as  a  whole  is  reported  to  give  good  results,  but 
the  relative  proportions  of  mash  and  grain  eaten  are  not  noted.  With  a  sufficient 
supply  of  grain  the  chicks  themselves  avoid  the  danger  of  the  too  concentrated 
mash  by  eating  more  of  the  grain  mixture  (see  p.  220).  The  use  of  Kafir 
corn  in  the  ration  illustrates  the  adaptation  of  locally  available  foods  to  general 
formulas  for  feeding.  Kafir  corn  can  be  grown  when  and  where  Indian  corn 
cannot,  and  under  such  conditions  may  be  the  cheaper  food.  In  the  eastern  feed 
stores  Kafir  corn  is  in  small  supply  and  at  high  prices,  and  under  such  condi- 
tions is  not  used  by  poultry  keepers  who  understand  feeding. 

23.  For  laying  hens  (confined}.    Dry  mash  : 

weight 

Shorts    .    .    .*.    .    .    ...  ".    .    .    .  ' '. 6 

Bran  ............    4 3 

Corn  meal      .    .    .    .    .    .'    .'..»» 6 

Beef  scrap 5 

Alfalfa  meal  .     .    .    .•• i 

Grain  mixture:  Partsby 

weight 


Wheat 
Corn. 
Oats  . 


Mash  fed  in  hoppers ;  grain  scattered  in  litter.  Used  in  the  proportions  by 
weight  of  twenty-one  pounds  of  mash  to  twenty-five  pounds  of  grain,  the  ration 
has  a  nutrient  ratio  of  I  :  4. 

As  fed,  this  was  a  heavy  forcing  ration  and  gave  a  large  egg  yield.  The 
report  on  it  is  based  on  a  short  period,  —  less  than  a  year.  The  hens  were 
forced  to  eat  mash  by  having  the  grain  cut  down  until  they  would  eat  the 
amount  of  mash  required  to  make  the  ration  of  the  nutritive  ratio  designed. 
The  ration  is  not  suitable  for  breeding  stock  or  for  hens  intended  as  layers 
for  more  than  one  season,  but  may  often  be  profitably  used  with  laying  stock 
from  which  it  is  desired  to  get  the  largest  possible  egg  yield  in  a  short  time. 

CORNELL  UNIVERSITY  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  RATIONS 

24.  Variety  ration  for  young  chickens. ,1  First  to  third  day:  Bread 
crumbs,  8  pounds  ;  hard-boiled  eggs,  2  pounds  ;  this  mixture  moistened  slightly 
with  sweet  skimmed  milk  and  fed  five  times  a  day.  Finely  cracked  grain,  — 

1  Biilletin  No.  282,  Cornell  University  Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING 


23I 


wheat,  3  parts;  corn,  2  parts;  hulled  oats,  I  part, —  kept  before  chicks  in  shal- 
low trays  containing  a  little  bran. 

Third  to  seventh  day :  For  the  bread  and  eggs  was  gradually  substituted  a 
well-baked  johnnycake  (fed  twice  daily,  all  that  the  chicks  would  eat)  made  as 
follows:  corn  meal,  4  pounds;  infertile  eggs,  il  pounds  (i  dozen);  sour  milk, 
2  pounds ;  baking  soda,  5  level  teaspoons ;  grain  in  litter  two  or  three  times 
daily,  bran  in  separate  dish. 

One  to  three  weeks:  Johnnycake  and  grain  as  above;  bran,  8  pounds,  beef 
scraps,  2  pounds,  in  place  of  clear  bran. 

Three  to  six  weeks :  Grain  as  above ;  one  feed  of  johnnycake  daily.  During 
the  early  part  of  the  period  the  johnnycake  was  mixed-with  equal  parts  of  the 
cracked  grain ;  gradually  the  cake  was  discontinued,  and  in  place  of  the  bran 
and  beef  scrap  dry  mash  was  given  :  corn  meal,  100  pounds ;  wheat  middlings, 
100  pounds;  beef  scrap,  100  pounds;  wheat  bran,  200  pounds;  fed  in  hop- 
pers always  accessible.  Green  food  was  available  at  all  times. 

25.  After  the  sixth  week  chicks  given  the  above  ration  were  changed  to  the 
folio  wing  fattening  ration  :  a  mixture  of  ground  hulled  oats,  I  part  (by  weight) ; 
corn  meal,  I  part ;  ground  buckwheat,  I  part ;  moistened  with  sour  milk  and 
fed  twice  daily.     Grain  in  litter  (one  feeding  daily),  —  cracked  hulled  oats, 
i  part ;  cracked  corn,  I  part ;  cracked  wheat,  I  part.    Grit  and  beef  scrap  fed 
in  hoppers. 

Ration  24  was  the  most  satisfactory  of  seven  rations  compared  for  the 
period,  the  others  being  (a]  cracked  grain  and  bran ;  (b]  cracked  grain ;  (c] 
cracked  grain  and  dry  mash ;  (</)  dry  mash ;  (e)  and  (f)  wet  mash.  It  is  an 
excellent  ration,  but  as  good  results  are  usually  obtained  on  a  simpler  system 
without  the  changes  according  to  age.  The  ration  given  from  one  to  three 
weeks  would  probably  have  given  as  good  or  better  results  not  only  for  the 
first  six-weeks  period  but  also  through  the  second  six-weeks  period,  when  the 
fattening  ration  25  was  used.  The  report  says  that  the  chicks  started  on 
ration  24  did  not  like  the  change,  though  some  of  the  others  on  poorer  rations 
during  the  earlier  period  ate  the  fattening  ration  readily.  Ration  24  is  a  very 
good  standard  ration,  adapted  to  all  ordinary  purposes  in  feeding  and  quite  as 
effective  when  simplified,  as  for  the  first  to  the  third  week.  As  fed  during  the 
last  three  weeks  it  could  readily  be  changed  to  a  moist  mash  ration  by  wetting 
the  ground  grains  and  feeding  the  beef  scrap  separately,  or  by  reducing  the 
scrap  to  about  thirty  or  forty  pounds. 

26.  Experimental  rations  for  laying  hens  (pullet  year}}- 

(a]  Grain  mixtures  as  follows  (parts  by  weight) : 

July   28  to  Sept.    8.  —  i  cracked  corn,  i  wheat,  i  oats 

Sept.    9  to  Dec.    8.  —  3  cracked  corn,  4  wheat,  i  oats 

Dec.     9  to  Jan.    18.  —  4  cracked  corn,  3  wheat,  i  oats 

Jan.    19  to  Feb.  16.  —  3  cracked  corn,  3  wheat,  i  oats,  i  buckwheat 

Feb.  17  to  July   27.  —  4  cracked  corn,  3  wheat,  i  oats 

1  Bulletin  No.  249,  Cornell  University  Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 


232  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Mash:  Parts  by 

weight 

Corn  meal >    .,_>  ,-"->.  •    •  2 

Wheat  middlings 2 

Wheat  bran i 

Beef  scrap 2 

Alfalfa  meal i 

Grain  fed  morning  and  evening  in  litter.    Mash  fed  wet  at  noon. 

(b)  Same  as  (a)  except  mash  fed  dry  in  hoppers. 

(<:)  The  same  grain  mixture  as  (a]  and  (b}  morning,  noon,  and  night  in  litter, 
and  beef  scrap  in  hoppers. 

(d}  The  same  grain  mixture  as  (tf),  (£),  and  (c)  in  hoppers,  and  beef  scrap 
in  hoppers. 

All  lots  were  given  mangels  and  green  cut  bone  at  intervals  while  closely 
confined. 

The  pullets  (White  Leghorns)  in  this  experiment  were  also  under  observa- 
tion for  data  on  other  points  than  relation  of  ration  to  egg  production,  and  were 
subject  to  some  conditions  unfavorable  to  egg  production,  and  so  gave  a  rela- 
tively low  egg  yield  (averages :  (a),  121.4;  (<*),  129.3;  (c\  110.7;  (d\  107.5); 
but  as  conditions  were  uniform,  and  the  stock  selected  to  make  the  different 
lots  strictly  comparable,  the  results  are  valuable  to  the  student  of  poultry  feed- 
ing. It  is  at  once  noted  that  the  highest  and  the  lowest  egg  yield  came  from 
hopper-fed  hens  ;  but  the  high  yield  came  from  the  lot  that,  with  grain  in  litter 
(for  exercise),  had  a  rich  dry  mash  accessible  at  all  times,  insuring  full  feeding 
and  the  working  off  of  any  surplus  of  concentrated  food,  while  the  low  egg  yield 
came  from  a  lot  kept  through  a  year  with  only  such  exercise  as  full-fed  hens 
would  take  without  compulsion.  With  hens  of  another  type  a  much  lower 
egg  yield  and  higher  mortality  would  result  from  the  use  of  ration  (d).  Both 
(a)  and  (b)  are  heavy  forcing  rations,  as  they  were  designed  to  be ;  but  (b\ 
though  carrying  a  dangerous  percentage  of  beef  scrap,  gave  (conditions  con- 
sidered) good  results,  while  (a)  gave  lower  results  in  egg  production,  and  ex- 
traordinary mortality,  due  to  the  high  percentage  of  beef  scrap  in  a  wet  mash. 
The  tendency  of  the  bird  to  balance  its  ration  and  to  limit  the  quantities  of 
concentrated  food  taken  is  shown  in  a  comparison  of  the  relative  proportions 
of  mash  and  grain  eaten  in  rations  (a)  and  (b).  The  hens  fed  on  the  wet  mash  ate 
a  smaller  proportion  of  mash  and  a  larger  proportion  of  hard  grain  than  those 
fed  dry  mash,  appetite  warning  them  against  the  dangerous  food.  The  con- 
sumption of  grit  and  shell  in  connection  with  these  rations  affords  some  inter- 
esting data  bearing  on  the  question  of  the  use  of  grit  and  the  attitude  of  the 
birds  toward  grit.  The  hens  fed  on  ration  (c)  consumed  more  than  twice  as 
much  grit  as  those  fed  on  (b)  and  (d}.  The  hens  fed  on  (a)  consumed  about 
40  per  cent  more  grit  than  those  fed  on  (b]  and  (d}.  The  hens  fed  on  (c)  con- 
sumed from  one  fourth  to  one  third  more  shell  than  those  fed  on  the  other 
rations,  and  consumed  nearly  equal  amounts  of  .shell  and  grit.  The  differ- 
ences in  consumption  of  grit  between  (b)  and  (d\  and  in  consumption  of  shell 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  233 

between  (a\  (b\  and  (d)  are  insignificant.  The  large  consumption  of  grit  by  those 
fed  on  (a) — that  is,  hens  among  which  mortality  was  high,  owing  to  faulty  mash 
—  is  in  accord  with  what  has  often  been  observed.  The  large  and  equal  con- 
sumption of  grit  and  shell  by  the  hens  fed  on  ration  (c)  is  significant.  Grit,  shell, 
and  meat  scraps  were  given  them  in  hoppers.  For  everything  else  they  had  to 
scratch.  There  is  a  question  as  to  whether  the  grit  and  shell  were  all  consumed 
or  a  considerable  part  merely  pulled  out  of  the  hoppers,  as  hens  are  often  seen 
to  do  in  expectation  of  finding  something  more  palatable  among  the  contents 
of  the  hopper. 

27.  Crate-fattening  rations,  (a)  To  make  yellow  flesh  :  corn  meal,  3  parts  ; 
red-dog  flour,  |  part,  mixed  with  milk  to  consistency  of  cement,  (b)  For  white 
flesh  :  pearl  oat  dust,  2  parts  ;  buckwheat  flour,  2  parts ;  barley  meal,  I  part ; 
white  corn  meal,  I  part,  mixed  with  milk. 

When  color  of  flesh  is  immaterial,  crate  fatteners  use,  as  one  says,  "  almost 
anything  we  can  mix."  The  proportions  of  ingredients  are  of  less  importance 
than  the  consistency  of  the  food.  Many  mix  the  food  some  hours  before  feed- 
ing, in  order  that  fermentation  may  begin  before  the  birds  eat  it,  and  so  the 
process  of  digestion  be  advanced. 


RATIONS  FOR  TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  AND  PHEASANTS 

All  gallinaceous  birds  in  domestication  may  be  fed  on  the  same  rations  as 
chickens  and  fowls  on  range,  the  number  and  times  of  feeding  and  the  quan- 
tities of  food  being  adapted  to  the  habits  of  the  birds  and  to  the  conditions. 
The  young  of  these  other  kinds  are  commonly  considered  more  difficult  to 
feed  and  to  grow  than  chickens.  This  is  true  only  so  far  as  concerns  growing 
them  under  like  conditions.  Fowls,  as  we  have  seen,  are,  generally  speaking, 
thoroughly  domesticated,  which  accounts  in  part  for  the  fact  that  the  others 
are  not ;  for  as  far  as  fowls,  ducks,  and  geese  preempt  foraging  ground  near 
the  homestead  and  its  outbuildings,  they  force  the  less  domestic  poultry  to 
range  farther  away  and  in  a  measure  prevent  their  complete  domestication. 
Instances  of  all  the  other  gallinaceous  poultry  becoming  as  tame  as  many 
fowls  and  thriving  under  the  same  conditions  are  numerous  enough  to  indi- 
cate that  if  they  could  get,  in  close  contact  with  man,  the  range  conditions  that 
they  prefer  or  need,  they  would  ultimately  become  very  tame.  It  may  reasonably 
be  assumed  that  under  such  conditions  they  would  gradually  become  as  well 
adapted  to  conditions  of  life  in  closer  contact  with  man  as  do  fowls,  ducks,  and 
geese.  Under  existing  conditions  it  is,  on  the  whole,  of  advantage  to  man 
that  several  valuable  kinds  of  poultry  prefer  to  live  a  little  aloof  from  the 
others  and  from  him,  and  so  utilize  food  and  give  such  service  as  they  may  on 
land  outside  the  range  of  the  others. 

Given  conditions  adapted  to  their  dispositions  and  habits  of  life,  the  feeding 
of  these  birds  does  not  differ  at  all  from  the  feeding  of  fowls  under  similar 
conditions.  Given  conditions  which  fret  them,  and  feeding  them  becomes  dif- 
ficult, —  a  matter  of  delicacies  and  dieting,  —  not  because  the  ordinary  food  is 


234  POULTRY  CULTURE 

unsuitable  to  them  under  normal  conditions,  but  because  of  the  sympathetic  rela- 
tion between  the  nervous  and  digestive  systems.  It  does  not  appear  that  their 
digestive  organs  are  originally  and  normally  less  robust  than  those  of  fowls,  but 
it  is  plain  that  in  general  their  nervous  systems  are  more  sensitive,  and  most 
sensitive  in  infancy,  when  every  part  of  the  organism  is  most  susceptible.  For 
that  reason  the  poultry  keeper  who  grows  these  birds  must  cater  more  to  their 
natural  habits.  When  he  does  this,  and  arranges  the  feeding  accordingly,  it  is 
found  that  the  same  foods  may  be  used  for  all,  and  that  there  is  no  more  need 
of  special  diets  for  the  young  of  each  of  these  rarer  kinds  of  poultry  than  for 
young  chickens. 

28.  For  turkeys  on  farm  range.  For  the  young  poults,  coarsely  ground 
corn  mixed  with  milk  (sweet  or  sour)  or  baked  in  a  cake  and  moistened  with 
milk.  This  is  gradually  mixed  with  cracked  corn  until,  when  the  poults  are 
about  eight  weeks  old,  cracked  corn  is  given  clear.  Through  the  summer  they 
are  fed  on  this  twice  a  day.  In  the  fall  they  are  fattened  on  whole  corn,  fed 
two  or  three  times  a  day. 

This  is  the  method  of  many  growers  in  the  turkey-growing  district  in  Rhode 
Island  and  Connecticut.  -Some  growers  feed  to  both  young  and  old  one  feed 
daily  of  dough  or  mash,  as  fed  to  fowls  and  other  poultry.  Compare  this 
with  ration  I.  The  success  of  this  method  shows  that  with  suitable  foraging 
conditions  all  that  is  needed  to  supplement  the  natural  ration  is  what  heavy 
grain  (corn)  they  will  eat.  When  range  is  good,  many  growers  do  not  feed  at  all 
through  the  season  when  insects,  especially  grasshoppers,  are  most  abundant. 
The  fattening  of  turkeys  in  the  late  fall  depends  largely  upon  the  weather.  If  the 
weather  is  seasonable, —  that  is,  quite  cool  in  northerly  latitudes,  —  less  insect 
and  vegetable  foods  are  to  be  secured  by  foraging,  the  appetite  for  heavy  food 
is  also  keener,  and  the  turkeys  eat  corn  freely  and  fatten  well.  If  the  weather 
is  warm  there  is  more  food  available  on  the  range,  the  appetite  is  not  so  sharp, 
they  will  not  eat  corn  so  freely,  and  it  may  not  be  possible  to  fatten  them  as 
much  as  desired.  Turkeys  do  not  fatten  well  in  confinement.  Some  of  the 
fattening  plants  in  New  England,  have  tried  fattening  them  in  large  flocks,  like 
geese,  but  results  have  not  been  satisfactory.  It  is  not  necessary  to  multiply 
examples  of  turkey  rations.  Any  of  the  rations  given  to  fowls  and  chickens 
on  range  may  be  successfully  used  for  turkeys  on  range. 

For  peafowls.  In  size  and  habit  these  birds  are  very  similar  to  turkeys,  and 
may  be  reared  in  the  same  way.  Usually  they  are  found  in  much  smaller 
flocks,  a  male  and  one  or  two  females  with  their  young.  They  forage  widely, 
as  turkeys  do,  and  small  flocks  on  good  range  are  self-sustaining  except  in 
winter. 

For  guineas.  In  the  conditions  in  which  they  are  usually  grown,  guineas 
need  little  attention.  They  may  be  fed  just  the  same  as  fowls  and  chicks  on 
range.  They  prefer  to  keep  away  from  other  poultry  much  of  the  time,  but 
when  they  come  among  fowls,  they  are  very  domineering. 

For  pheasants.  For  a  long  time  pheasants  were  considered  especially  deli- 
cate, requiring  special  feeding  until  well  grown.  The  most  successful  growers  in 


RATIONS  AND  METHODS  OF  FEEDING  235 

America  to-day  feed  them  about  the  same  as  chickens.  The  prepared  chick- 
food  mixtures  are  used  for  them  with  very  satisfactory  results.  The  half-wild 
pheasants  protected  in  the  woods  in  some  of  the  states  often  come  to  the  farms 
for  food,  especially  in  winter,  when  they  sometimes  take  up  their  quarters 
with  the  fowls.  At  planting  time,  too,  they  sometimes  become  quite  as  tame 
as  fowls. 

For  ostriches.  In  South  Africa,  where  ostrich  farming  is  carried  on  more 
extensively  then  in  America,  the  most  approved  method  of  feeding  is  to  pasture 
the  birds  on  alfalfa,  supplementing  this  with  occasional  feeds  of  corn.  For  win- 
ter feeding,  or  when  pasture  is  short,  hay,  mangels,  turnips,  melons,  etc.  are  used. 
In  feeding  habits,  ostriches  resemble  geese  (on  land)  more  than  they  do  any  other 
poultry. 

RATIONS  FOR  DUCKS 

29.  For  ducklings.    Corn  meal  i  part,  bran  2  parts  ;  add  5  per  cent  of  beef 
scrap  and  a  little  fine  grit  or  coarse  gravel ;  give  an  occasional  feed  of  vege- 
tables or  green  food :  feed  five  times  a  day  until  five  weeks  old,  then  three 
times  a  day.    Fatten  on  this,  feeding  all  that  the  birds  will  eat. 

This  is  practically  an  irregular  alternation  of  standard  rations  2  and  3.  It 
is  the  ration  used  by  one  of  the  most  successful  of  the  smaller  duck  growers 
of  New  England.  On  comparison  of  reports  it  appears  to  have  been  as  good 
a  ration  as  any  of  the  heavier  rations  following.  One  of  the  largest  duck 
growers  on  Long  Island  used  for  years  this  ration  slightly  modified  by  add- 
ing small  proportions  of  ground  oats,  middlings,  or  anything  available.  Such 
additions  to  a  simple  standard  ration  vary  the  flavor,  make  it  more  appetizing, 
induce  the  birds  to  eat  more  heartily,  and  (probably)  add  somewhat  to  its  nutri- 
tive quality.  When  such  a  ration  is  fed  to  ducklings  intended  to  be  marketed 
'at  about  ten  weeks,  and  kept  closely  confined,  the  necessary  variation  for  those 
to  be  grown  for  stock  purposes  is  made,  without  altering  the  proportions  of 
the  ration  given,  by  simply  putting  the  birds  on  pasture. 

30.  James  Rankings  duck  rations.    First  food  for  ducklings,  corn  meal,  i 
part ;  bran,  4  parts ;  low-grade  flour  to  hold  together,  5  per  cent  of  grit  or  coarse 
sand  ;  about  the  third  day,  add  a  little  beef  scrap  and  (cut)  green  rye  ;  feed  five 
times  a  day  for  a  few  weeks ;  after  that  feed  three  times  daily  and  gradually 
substitute  meal  for  bran,  until  at  eight  weeks  the  ration  is  three  fourths  meal 
and  the  beef  scrap  increased  to  10  per  cent  or  more.    Describing  his  fattening 
ration  separately,  Mr.  Rankin  has  given  it  as  corn  meal,  3  parts ;  low-grade 
flour,  i  part ;  beef  scrap,  f  part ;  green  stuff,  i  part ;  fed  three  times  a  day,  from 
the  eighth  to  the  eleventh  week. 

Compared  with  ration  29  this  is  a  lighter  ration  at  the  beginning  and  a 
heavier  toward  the  finish  of  the  period  of  making  green  ducks.  In  remarks 
on  ration  29  it  was  said  that  it  appeared  to  give  as  good  results  as  the  heavier 
rations.  Results  by  rations  29  and  30  were  practically  the  same.  The  infer- 
ence is  that  the  flour  used  in  ration  30  at  first  was  sufficient  to  supply  much 
of  the  deficiency  in  meal,  and  that  when  more  meal  was  added,  growth  and 


236  POULTRY  CULTURE 

fattening  were  accelerated,  and  so  results  of  the  two  rations  for  the  full  period 
were  equalized. 

31.  For  stock  ducks  (in  autumn  and  early  winter}.    About  equal  parts  of 
corn  meal,  wheat  bran,  and  boiled  vegetables,  with  10  per  cent  of  beef  scrap, 
fed  morning  and  evening ;  at  noon  a  little  cracked  corn,  wheat,  or  oats.   After 
the  birds  begin  laying,  increase  the  proportions  of  meal  and  scrap  and  add  low- 
grade  flour,  making  mash  about  as  follows :  meal,  I  part ;  bran,  I  part ;  low- 
grade  flour,  i  part ;  vegetables,  I  part,  with  from  12  to  15  per  cent  beef  scrap. 

This  is  practically  a  standard  ration  until  the  ducks  are  laying,  then  a  very 
heavy  ration  to  keep  up  condition  under  the  drain  of  laying.  Ducks  lay  almost 
daily  from  about  January  first  until  about  midsummer. 

32.  Weber  Brothers''  rations.   For  the  first  three  weeks,  corn  meal,  I  part; 
bran,  I  part ;  low-grade  flour,  i  part ;  dry  bread  (ground)  and  rolled  oats,  i  part ; 
add  5  per  cent  of  beef  scrap,  a  little  grit,  and  a  little  cut  clover  or  alfalfa  or  other 
cut  green  rye.    Mix  this  dry,  then  moisten  with  water  and  mix  to  a  doughy  con- 
sistency.   Feed  five  times  a  day.  Water  at  each  feeding.    From  the  third  to  the 
eighth  week  the  above  ration  is  rnodified  to  corn  meal,  i  part ;  bran,  i  part ; 
low-grade  flour,  i  part ;  green  stuff,  i  part ;  beef  scrap,  i  per  cent ;  fed  at  first 
four  times,  then  three  times,  a  day.  From  the  eighth  to  the  eleventh  week,  duck- 
lings for  market  are  fattened  on  corn  meal,  3  parts ;  low-grade  flour,  i  part ; 
beef  scrap,  |  part ;  about  3  per  cent  of  oyster  shells  and  grit,  with  occasionally 
a  little  green  stuff.   Those  saved  for  breeders  are  fed  corn  meal,  3  parts ;  bran, 
3  parts ;  low-grade  flour,  2  parts ;  beef  scrap,  I  part ;  (root)  vegetables,  i  part ; 
green  stuff,  i  part,  with  about  i  per  cent  of  grit,  and  a  little  salt ;  about  once  a 
week  i  per  cent  of  ground  charcoal  is  added.    The  mash  is  fed  morning  and 
evening,  about  4  quarts  to  every  10  large  ducks,  and  when  ducks  are  laying 
heavily,  they  are  given  at  noon  about  i  pint  cracked  corn  to  every  10  ducks. 

The  ration  as  used  for  the  youngest  ducks  contains  a  greater  variety  of 
ingredients,  because  these  growers  could  get  only  limited  quantities  of  stale 
bread  and  of  rolled  oats  at  prices  which  made  them  economical  foods,  and  it 
was  judged  best  to  use  these  for  the  youngest  ducklings.  The  regular  use  of 
grit  and  shell  was  necessary  with  the  ration  as  fed  after  the  eighth  week, 
because  of  the  small  proportion  of  bran.  Whether  it  is  better  to  omit  bran  and 
use  grit  and  shell  is  doubtful.  The  period  in  which  this  ration  was  used  is  not 
long  enough  to  fully  develop  results  of  feeding  it.  The  ration  fed  to  stock 
birds  is  heavier  than  the  standard  rations  given. 

While  it  is  customary  to  feed  young  ducks  five  or  six  times  a  day  for  the 
first  few  weeks,  it  is  not  certain  that  there  is  any  advantage  in  feeding  more 
than  three  times,  except  when  the  ducklings  get  no  feed  but  what  is  given. 
Ducklings  on  grass  in  spring  and  summer  will  come  on  as  fast  on  three  meals 
of  mash  as  on  five,  and  will  be  stronger.  For  rapid  forcing,  young  ducks  may 
be  fed  meat  much  more  heavily  than  in  any  of  these  rations.  They  will  stand 
for  a  while  a  ration  nearly  one  third  beef  scrap.  Whether  that  is  a  profitable 
ration  has  not  been  fully  demonstrated.  In  feeding  small  flocks  of  ducks  (up  to 
two  or  three  hundred)  the  author  has  not  found  it  necessary  to  give  grit 


RATIONS  AND   METHODS  OF  FEEDING  237 

and  shell  continuously.  In  fact,  he  has  never  found  it  necessary  except  with  a 
few  feeds  at  first,  and  thereafter  at  rare  intervals  if  ducks  showed  symptoms 
of  leg  weakness. 

RATIONS  FOR  GEESE 

33.  Ration  for  goslings  (on  pasture).  First  day,  grass  only ;  after  that,  two 
or  three  feeds  daily  of  mash  or  scalded  cracked  corn.    If  confined  to  grassless 
yard  or  on  tough  grass  which  they  do  not  relish,  feed,  with  several  grain  foods 
daily,  all  the  succulent  green  food  that  they  will  eat. 

This  ration  as  given  for  birds  on  pasture  is  that  used  in  the  goose-growing 
section  of  Rhode  Island.  Compare  it  with  ration  i  for  chicks  and  ration  28 
for  young  turkeys. 

34.  Fattening  rations  for  goslings.   After  six  weeks,  feed  corn  meal,  i  part ; 
bran,  i  part,  all  that  the  birds  will  eat,  three  times  a  day.    For  geese  reared  on 
pasture,  with  light  feeding  of  grain  until  three  or  four  months  old,  goose 
fatteners  use  a  mash  of  all  corn  meal,  feeding  this  for  four  or  five  weeks. 

35.  Ration  for  breeding  geese  (on  pasture}.  One  or  two  light  feeds  of  grain, 
or  a  feed  of  mash  and  one  of  grain  daily.    When  pasture  is  not  available,  feed 
one  mash  and  one  grain  feed  daily,  and  supply  liberally  with  vegetables  and 
green  stuff. 

There  is  essentially  no  difference  between  such  rations  and  those  used  for 
fowls,  ducks,  and  turkeys.  In  every  case  the  feeder  supplies  approximately  a 
common  standard  grain  ration,  with  a  little  animal  food  and  some  green  food. 
The  birds  balance  their  own  rations,  as  far  as  quantities  permit.  Unless  the 
food  supply  is  very  deficient  in  some  kind  of  food,  they  keep  in  good  (if 
not  perfect)  condition,  and  soon  get  in  condition  after  they  begin  laying.  In 
grazing,  geese  (even  more  than  fowls  and  ducks)  will  take  the  roots  of  grass 
and  many  plants  after  the  supply  of  tops  is  exhausted. 

36.  Swans  may  be  fed  the  same  as  geese.    Being  grown  in  small  numbers 
on  ponds  and  lakes,  they  are  usually  left  much  to  themselves.    They  secure 
food  from  the  water,  being  very  destructive  of  small  fish  and  other  creatures 
found  in  the  water.    When  such  supplies  of  food  are  insufficient  they  may  be 
fed  grain  mashes  or  stale  bread,  a  most  convenient  food  for  them  in  many  cases. 


CHAPTER    XIV 
INCUBATION 

Incubation  the  beginning  and  the  end  of  the  common  cycle  of 
operations  in  poultry  culture.  By  incubation  the  bird  is  produced 
from  the  egg.  For  incubation  and  the  perpetuation  of  its  kind  the 
bird,  according  to  its  sex,  produces  eggs  or  contributes  to  their  fer- 
tilization ;  and  then,  in  birds  of  the  air,  both  male  and  female  take 
part  in  the  incubating  of  the  eggs,  the  substance  of  which  has  been 
furnished  almost  wholly  by  the  female.  With  poultry  in  domesti- 
cation, as  shown  in  Chapter  1,  the  male  has  no  part  in  incubation, 
and  the  female  may  often  be  relieved  of  it  to  the  very  great 
economic  advantage  of  man  ;  but,  whatever  the  attitude  of  the 
poultryman  toward  the  process,  incubation  is  one  of  his  most  per- 
plexing problems,  affecting  and  affected  by  many  other  important 
problems,  and  seldom  presenting  itself  in  the  same  form  twice  in 
succession.  From  the  nature  of  the  subject  its  proper  place  in  a  sys- 
tematic study  of  poultry  culture  is  doubtful.  Equally  good  reasons 
may  be  given  for  beginning  and  for  concluding  a  detailed  descrip- 
tion of  a  generation  of  birds  with  the  subject  of  incubation.  But, 
considering  the  close  analogy  between  the  egg  of  an  oviparous 
creature  and  the  seed  of  a  plant,  it  seems  most  natural  and  appro- 
priate to  begin  a  practical  study  of  those  details  with  the  egg  con- 
sidered simply  as  material  for  the  purpose,  and  without  regard  to 
either  its  antecedents  or  its  possibilities  beyond  the  mere  produc- 
tion of  an  organism  of  the  kind  which  produced  it. 

The  egg.  Considered  from  the  point  of  view  just  indicated,  an 
egg  consists  of  four  parts  : 

1 .  A  germ,  which  is  the  true  egg. 

2.  A  mass  of  albumin  (the  white  of  the  egg),  —  nitrogenous 
matter  which  the  germ,  quickened  into  life,  will,  as  it  grows,  appro- 
priate to  form  the  substance  of  the  embryonic  being. 

3.  A  supply  of  food  (the  yolk  of  the  egg)  for  the  first  nourish- 
ment of  the  young  bird  after  exclusion. 

238 


INCUBATION 

4.  A  protective  covering  which  is  composed  of  a  double  mem- 
brane within  a  hard  shell. 

The  germ  may  be  seen,  when  the  egg  is  broken,  as  a  little  white 
speck  on  the  yolk,  and  always  on  the  upper  side  of  the  yolk,  which 
position  it  keeps  because  the  yolk  is  suspended  in  the  white  by  two 
albuminous  strings,  and  in  whatever  position  the  egg  may  lie,  the 
yolk  turns,  bringing  the  germ  to  the  upper  side. 

NOTE.  An  egg  as  described  may  be  produced  by  the  female  bird  without 
association  with  the  male.  In  the  ordinary  natural  course  the  female  on  arriv- 
ing at  maturity  (or  at  the  breeding  season)  produces  eggs  which  are  complete 
for  commercial  purposes  and  also,  as  far  as  her  contribution  to  the  egg  goes, 
for  breeding  purposes ;  but  the  egg  will  not  hatch  unless  the  germ  furnished 
by  the  female  has  been  fertilized  by  union  with  the  sperm  contributed  by  the 
male  at  the  proper  stage  of  its  development,  nor  will  the  germ  thus  fertilized 
produce  a  creature  of  sufficient  vitality  for  normal  development  if  the  germinal 
elements  contributed  by  the  parents  are  lacking  in  vitality.  Just  how  far  a 
superabundance  of  vitality  contributed  by  one  parent  may  compensate  for  a  de- 
ficiency in  vitality  in  the  contribution  of  the  other  is  not  known.  That  there  is 
a  tendency  to  equalization  is  often  apparent,  yet  it  is  just  as  evident  that  there 
must  be  a  certain  degree  of  initial  vkality  in  an  element  before  it  can  unite 
with  its  opposite  sexual  element  for  the  production  of  a  new  organism.  This  is 
illustrated  best  in  the  case  of  those  hens  of  great  laying  capacity  which  produce 
few  or  no  chicks,  their  eggs  rarely  becoming  fertile  even  with  every  oppor- 
tunity to  do  so.  The  fact  that  a  hen  can  produce,  in  extraordinary  numbers, 
eggs  each  of  which  apparently  furnishes  the  material  for  a  chick,  though  the 
accompanying  germ  lacks  the  vitality  which  would  enable  it  under  proper  con- 
ditions to  utilize  that  material,  indicates  that  capacity  to  transmit  vitality  is  more 
restricted  than  capacity  to  produce  material  for  the  building  of  new  organisms. 
Of  like  significance  in  this  connection  is  the  fact  that,  though  the  male's  contri- 
bution to  the  egg  is  but  a  minute  quantity  of  sperm,  the  capacity  of  the  average 
male  to  "  strongly  fertilize  "  eggs  is  plainly  limited.  These  points  are  considered 
more  fully  in  the  chapters  relating  to  breeding.  Mention  is  made  of  them  here 
to  show  that,  in  the  nature  of  the  case,  the  ordinary  lot  of  eggs  used  for  incu- 
bation is  unlikely  to  be  high  in  "  hatchability,"  —  which  fact  must  be  given  due 
consideration  in  every  effort  to  estimate  causes  of  unsatisfactory  hatches. 

A  fertile  egg.  Technically,  a  fertile  egg  is  an  egg  which  has 
fertilized  germs  possessed  of  sufficient  vitality  to  develop  so  far 
that  development  can  be  seen  through  the  shell  when  the  egg,  after 
having  been  incubated  for  a  time,  is  tested  by  being  held  before 
a  light  in  the  usual  way.  Fertility  cannot  be  determined  without 
incubation.  The  amount  of  incubation  necessary  to  show  whether 


240  POULTRY  CULTURE 

an  egg  is  fertile  varies  with  the  vitality  of  the  germ,  the  color  and 
texture  of  the  shell  of  the  egg,  and  the  intensity  of  the  light 
before  which  it  is  observed.  A  thin-shelled  white  egg  in  a  strong 
light  may  show  fertility  inside  of  twenty-four  hours.  A  dark-shelled 
egg,  weak  in  fertility,  tested  in  a  poor  light,  may  appear  doubtful 
after  a  week  of  incubation.  Ordinarily  tests  made  at  the  fifth  to  the 
seventh  day  give  an  experienced  operator  reliable  indications  of 
the  fertility  and  vitality  of  eggs  that  have  been  incubated  under 
proper  conditions.  Though  not  invariable,  it  is  the  general  rule 
that  the  fertility  of  eggs  from  a  mating  is  quite  constant  through 
a  season  ;  so  that  when  the  degree  of  fertility  of  eggs  from  a 
pen,  flock,  or  stock  is  once  found,  it  is  likely  to  be  maintained  for 
some  time. 

As  a  rule,  fertility  and  vitality  reach  their  highest  point  of  com- 
bination at  the  natural  hatching  season.  Fertility  is  lowest  and 
vitality  highest  in  advance  of  this  season,  and  fertility  highest 
and  vitality  lowest  after  it;  but  numerous  special  cases  furnish 
exceptions  to  these  general  conditions.  Fertile,  hatchable  eggs  are 
the  prime  factor  in  incubation,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  hatching 
properties  of  the  eggs  used  is  absolutely  necessary  for  intelligent 
judgment  of  other  factors  when  hatches  are  unsatisfactory.  Self- 
evident  as  this  seems  when  stated,  a  great  deal  of  work  in  incuba- 
tion is  done  without  this  basic  knowledge,  the  operator  working  quite 
in  the  dark.  Detailed  instructions  as  to  determination  of  fertility 
are  given  in  the  paragraphs  relating  to  the  operation  of  incubators. 

Heat  the  energetic  factor  in  incubation.  Given  a  hatchable 
egg,  the  continuous  application  of  a  proper  degree  of  heat  for 
a  definite  period  of  time,  varying  in  different  kinds  of  birds,  will 
produce  an  embryonic  bird  which,  when  it  has  attained  the  fullest 
possible  development  within  the  shell,  will  break  the  shell  and 
emerge  from  it.  In  nature  the  heat  for  incubation  is  usually  applied 
by  the  bird  which  laid  the  egg,  relieved  at  intervals,  perhaps,  by 
its  mate.  In  artificial  incubation,  oil,  coal,  gas,  and  electricity  are 
used.  The  source  of  heat,  however,  is  immaterial.  All  that  is  neces- 
sary is  that  the  proper  degree  of  heat  be  continuously  maintained 
(not  absolutely,  but  approximately)  for  the  required  time,  under  such 
circumstances  that  atmospheric  conditions  affecting  the  develop- 
ment of  the  embryo  within  the  egg  will  not  be  markedly  unfavorable. 


INCUBATION  241 

The  fact  that,  in  natural  incubation,  eggs  seem  to  hatch  equally 
well  under  very  different  atmospheric  conditions  indicates  that  as 
close  adjustments  of  ventilation  and  moisture  as  of  heat  are  not 
required,  —  that  within  limits  (not  definitely  ascertained)  these 
may  vary  considerably  without  materially  affecting  the  hatch.  The 
normal  temperature  of  fowls  is  about  106°,  of  other  poultry  about 
the  same.  The  temperature  in  natural  incubation,  therefore,  would 
be  a  few  degrees  lower,  or  the  temperature  at  which  eggs  could  be 
kept  with  a  body  at  about  106°,  applying  heat  from  one  side  only. 
The  usual  temperature  of  eggs  under  hens  has  been  found  to  be 
from  102°  to  104°,  with  a  mean  of  103°. 

Antiquity  of  artificial  methods.  Artificial  incubation  has  been 
practiced  by  the  Egyptians  and  Chinese  for  some  thousands  of 
years.  As  developed  by  these  peoples  the  appliances  are  crude 
and  the  success  of  the  process  depends  largely  upon  the  judgment, 
skill,  and  careful  attention  of  the  operator.  Knowledge  of  the  art 
is  confined  principally  to  families  in  which  it  has  been  handed 
down  from  generation  to  generation.  Operations  are  on  an  ex- 
tensive scale,  and  the  operator  remains  with,  and  sometimes -in, 
the  "  incubator  "  continuously  throughout  a  period  of  incubation. 
Modern  artificial  incubation  as  developed  in  America  and  Europe 
is  on  different  lines.  The  constant  effort  of  the  occidental  inventor 
has  been  to  devise  an  incubator  that  might  be  operated  by  any  one 
anywhere,  on  any  desired  scale,  and  with  the  least  possible  per- 
sonal attention. 

The  problem  in  artificial  incubation.  To  maintain  a  temperature 
of  approximately  103°,  with  suitable  atmospheric  conditions,  —  to 
duplicate,  as  nearly  as  possible,  in  an  artificially  heated  chamber, 
the  conditions  to  which  an  egg  incubated  by  a  bird  is  subjected,— 
is  the  incubator  operator's  problem.  This  problem  presents  two 
phases.  The  first  of  these,  the  designing  and  construction  of  in- 
cubators, is  a  matter  for  the  inventor  and  manufacturer,  and  does 
not  directly  interest  the  ordinary  student. 

The  individual  potiltrymans  problem  in  artificial  incubation 
is  to  take  a  "  machine  "  which,  when  properly  attended,  is  self- 
regulating  for  heat,  give  it  the  attention  requisite  for  this,  and 
adapt  ventilation  and  moisture  to  local  atmospheric  conditions. 
To  reduce  to  the  minimum  the  variations  in  these  conditions,  the 


242  POULTRY  CULTURE 

incubator  is  usually  placed  in  a  basement  room  or  in  a  cellar.  Under 
the  most  skillful  management,  results  in  artificial  incubation  are 
likely  to  be  more  variable  than  when  eggs  of  like  hatching  quality 
are  incubated  with  equal  care  by  natural  methods,  because  the  judg- 
ment of  a  man  guided  by  experience  and  observation  works  less 
accurately  in  such  matters  than  the  inclination  of  the  bird  guided 
by  instinct  and  sensation. 

Experience  and  skill  count  in  the  operation  of  incubators,  as  in 
all  things,  but  the  incubator  operator  has  a  slightly  different  prob- 
lem in  every  machine  that  he  uses,  and  a  new  problem  in  every 
hatch,  and  a  high  degree  of  efficiency  in  this  line  of  work  is  only 
attained  by  careful  study  of  the  behavior  of  machines  in  the  posi- 
tions in  which  they  are  placed,  and  by  such  close  attention  to  the 
lamp,  or  other  source  of  heat,  that  the  eggs  are  never  subjected 
to  injurious  temperatures. 

Value  of  both  methods  of  incubation.  When  incubators  were 
perfected  to  the  point  where  temperature  was  easily  controlled, 
there  was  a  general  tendency  to  substitute  the  artificial  for  the 
natural  method.  As  it  became  generally  known  that,  notwithstand- 
ing the  progress  made,  the  artificial  hatchers  had  their  faults  and 
limitations,  and  still  required  close  attention  on  the  part  of  the 
operator,  this  tendency  was  checked.  It  is  now  generally  recog- 
nized that  the  natural  method  is  the  better  method  for  the  great 
majority  of  poultry  keepers,  provided  they  can  get  birds  to  incu- 
bate when  they  need  them,  but  that  whenever  the  natural  method 
is  for  any  reason  inadequate,  the  artificial  hatcher  must  be  used. 
On  this  principle  one  or  more  incubators  (of  suitable  capacity)  and 
the  necessary  brooders  become  a  part  of  the  equipment  of  most 
poultry  keepers,  to  be  used  in  emergencies  and  for  special  purposes, 
even  though  hatching  is  done  mostly  by  the  natural  method  ;  and 
whenever  operations  are  on  a  large  scale,  incubators  are  relied  upon 
to  do  the  hatching,  the  only  important  exception  to  this  being  in 
the  colony  poultry-farming  section  of  Rhode  Island. 

HATCHING  BY  NATURAL  METHODS 

Broodiness.  The  inclination  to  incubate  is  a  normal  character 
in  birds,  which  in  some  races  and  stocks  has  wholly  or  partly  dis- 
appeared. The  length  of  the  period  of  laying,  before  broodiness, 


INCUBATION  243 

varies  greatly.  Some  hens  will  become  broody  after  laying  only 
six  or  seven  eggs.  Usually  hens  of  stock  strongly  inclined  to 
broodiness  will  lay  from  one  to  two  dozen  eggs  before  becoming 
broody.  In  strains  or  stocks  in  which  the  broody  habit  is  present, 
but  not  strongly  established,  hens  often  lay  for  two,  three,  or  even 
five  or  six  months  without  becoming  broody.  As  a  rule,  increased 
egg  production  is  accompanied  by  decrease  in  broodiness.  Among 
ducks  the  Pekin  and  Indian  Runner  are  mostly  nonsitters.  In  geese, 
turkeys,  and  the  less  common  kinds  of  poultry  broodiness  is  general. 

Broodiness  is  shown  first  in  the  inclination  of  the  bird  to  re- 
main on  the  nest  after  laying,  then  by  a  change  of  attitude  toward 
the  keeper,  and  by  a  change  of  voice.  Usually  birds,  unless  very 
tame,  are  shy  about  being  approached  on  the  nest,  and  leave  it  if 
molested.  The  broody  bird  in  most  cases  becomes  bold,  sometimes 
vicious,  and  even  if  she  will  not  allow  herself  to  be  handled  on  the 
nest,  will  plainly  show  as  much  anger  as  fear  when  molested.  Hens 
and  other  gallinaceous  poultry,  when  broody,  make  a  clucking 
noise,  which  is  obviously  meant  to  guide  the  young  and  keep  them 
from  scattering  too  widely,  and  when  disturbed  give  a  harsh,  warn- 
ing cry.  Female  waterfowl,  when  broody,  give  a  warning  hiss,  as 
the  male  is  likely  to  do  at  any  time  when  molested.  The  attitude 
and  voice  of  the  bird  are  surer  indications  of  broodiness  than  her 
remaining  on  the  nest,  for  sick  birds  frequently  do  that. 

When  broody  hens  are  to  be  used  for  incubating,  it  is  advisable 
to  let  them  remain  for  several  days  on  the  nests  that  they  have  laid 
in,  until  broodiness  becomes  confirmed  and  they  have  ceased  lay- 
ing. The  duration  of  broodiness  is  not  (as  is  popularly  supposed) 
determined  or  influenced  by  the  time  required  to  incubate  the  eggs 
of  the  bird.  Unless  broodiness  is  interrupted  by  a  resumption  of 
egg  production,  or  she  is  compelled  by  exhaustion  to  leave  the 
nest,  a  bird  will  remain  on  eggs  until  young  appear,  and  may  even 
keep  for  an  indefinite  time  to  a  nest  containing  no  eggs. 

System  in  natural  incubation.  If  more  than  two  or  three  birds 
of  any  kind  are  set,  arrangements  for  managing  them  should  be 
systematized.  A  great  deal  of  the  dissatisfaction  with  natural 
methods  of  incubation  is  due  to  mismanagement.  The  sitting 
hens  should  always  be  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  flock  and 
made  as  secure  as  possible  from  disturbing  influences  of  all  kinds  ; 


244 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


yet  they  should  be  in  a  place  convenient  for  the  attendant  to  have 
oversight  of  them  as  he  goes  about  his  regular  work.  Most  hens 
may  be  moved  from  their  laying  nests  to  any  desired  place,  if  moved 

after  dark  ;  many  may  be  moved 
at  any  time.  But  the  other  kinds 
of  poultry  usually  resent  interfer- 
ence of  this  kind,  and  will  incu- 
bate only  in  the  nests  in  which 
they  have  been  laying.  For  this 
reason  it  is  customary,  especially 
with  turkeys  and  geese,  before 
the  birds  begin  to  lay,  to  place, 
in  locations  attractive  to  them, 

nests  that  will  be   suitable  for 
FIG.  273.    End  of  long  row  of  nests  for 

sitting  hens  them    during    incubation.     An 

empty  barrel  placed  on  its  side 

in  some  partly  secluded  place  is  often  used  for  both  turkeys  and 
geese.  When  the  birds  insist  on  making  nests  for  themselves 
the  careful  keeper  furnishes  protection  (see  illustrations,  p.  247) 
and,  as  far  as  the  birds  will  toler- 
ate it,  tries  to  make  them  secure 
from  molestation. 

From  the  greater  ease  of  con- 
trolling fowls,  and  because  the 
larger  kinds  of  poultry  lay  com- 
paratively few  eggs  even  when 
not  allowed  to  incubate  those 
produced  during  their  first  lay- 
ing period,  by  far  the  greater 
number  of  eggs  of  all  kinds  of 
poultry  hatched  by  natural  meth- 
ods are  hatched  under  hens. 


FIG.  274.    Half-barrel  nests  for  sitting 

hens,  out  of  doors.    (Photograph  from 

H.  de  Courcy) 


Nests  for  sitting  hens.  Nest  boxes  should  be  uniform  in  pattern 
and  size,  and  should  be  so  constructed  that  they  may  be  opened 
and  closed  at  will,  thus  insuring  control  of  the  hens.  Where  the 
number  to  be  set  is  not  large,  nests  of  the  pattern  shown  in  Fig.  275 
may  be  used.  When  large  numbers  are  set  it  is  better  to  have  them 
made  in  sections  of  four  and  arranged  in  tiers  or  banks  three  or  four 


INCUBATION 


245 


sections  high.  When  nests  are  placed  on  the  ground  the  earth  bot- 
tom should  be  shaped  before  putting  into  it  the  nest  material,  partic- 
ular care  being  taken  to  remove  any  small  stones  that  it  may  contain. 
For  nest  material.  Short,  fine  hay  or  straw  is  preferred  for  nest 
material,  but  fine  shavings  or  excelsior  may  be  used.  Some  poultry 
keepers  use  tobacco  stems,  which  are  objectionable  to  lice.  What- 
ever material  is  used  should  be 
shaped  and  well  pressed  down 
by  hand.  If  this  is  carelessly 
done,  eggs  are  likely  to  be 
broken,  and  the  hen  blamed  for 

FIG.  275.    Nest  boxes,  made  in  pairs,  for     what   was    none    of    her    fault, 
sitting  hens.    Inside  dimensions :    large,      Those  who  have  had  no  expe- 

s  //       .     _/-//.,     _  o// 11 //    »  , //    .  ,     _  ^// 


rience  or  have  been  unsuccess- 


16"  x  1 6"  x  1 8";  small,  12"  x  12"  x  15' 

ful  in  shaping  nests  will  find  it  a  good  plan,  after  doing  their  best, 
to  put  a  few  china  eggs  into  the  nest  and  let  the  hen  shape  it  as 
she  sits  on  these  for  a  day  or  two. 

Selection  of  eggs.  Eggs  to  be  incubated  should  be  selected  with 
care,  all  that  are  irregular  in  shape,  defective  in  shell,  or  abnormal 
in  size  being  discarded.  Leaving  out  of  consideration  all  other  ob- 
jections to  the  use  of  such  eggs  for  hatching,  their  liability  to  break 
is  sufficient  reason  for  not  using  them.  The  eggs  should  be  as 
fresh  as  possible,  and  should  be  clean.  Eggs  three  weeks  old 
when  set  may  hatch  well,  but 
the  young  birds  are  likely  to  be 
much  less  vigorous  than  those 
from  fresh  eggs.  Little  differ- 
ence is  noted  between  chicks 
from  eggs  ten  days  or  two 
weeks  old  when  set,  but  it  is 
the  general  opinion  that  the  fresher  eggs  produce  somewhat  better 
young.  Hatches  reported  from  eggs  kept  six  weeks  or  more  are 
not  well  authenticated. 

Eggs  kept  for  hatching  should  not  be  exposed  to  either  ex- 
treme cold  or  extreme  heat.  The  best  temperature  is  from  40°  to 
50°  F.  It  makes  no  appreciable  difference  in  what  position  they  are 
placed,  nor  is  it  necessary  to  turn  them  at  intervals ;  the  position 
does  not  affect  eggs  held  only  a  week  or  two.  It  is  not  advisable 


FIG.  276.    Same  as  Fig.  275,  with  nest 
boxes  closed 


246  POULTRY  CULTURE 

to  put  under  the  same  hen  the  eggs  of  birds  of  different  kinds  or 
distinctly  different  types,  but  it  is  often  advisable  to  place  in  the 
same  nest  eggs  from  different  flocks,  yards,  or  individual  hens, 
especially  if  the  hatching  qualities  of  some  of  the  matings  are 
known,  and  it  is  desired  to  determine  whether,  in  case  of  failure 
of  other  eggs  to  hatch,  the  fault  is  in  the  eggs  or  in  incubation. 
For  such  purposes  eggs  must  be  marked.  In  general  it  is  desirable 
that  all  eggs  used  for  incubation  be  marked,  or  that  the  nests  be 
marked  to  identify  eggs  set  in  them. 

Number  of  eggs  placed  in  a  nest.  The  number  of  eggs  in  a  setting 
varies  according  to  the  size  of  the  bird,  the  kind  of  eggs,  and  the 
season.  A  medium-sized  hen  can  cover  from  9  to  1 5  hens'  eggs, 
—usually  (of  average  eggs)  1 1  in  winter,  1 3  in  early  spring,  and 
1 5  after  the  weather  is  settled.  The  same  hen  would  cover  6  or  7 
turkey  eggs,  from  9  to  1 1  duck  eggs,  or  4  or  5  goose  eggs.  A  duck 
will  cover  about  the  same  number  of  duck  eggs  as  a  hen  of  like 
weight.  Geese  and  turkeys  cover  from  12  to  1 5  of  their  own  eggs. 
In  warm  weather  much  larger  numbers  of  eggs  may  be  given  and 
large  hatches  secured,1  but  because  of  the  risk  of  the  entire  hatch 
being  spoiled  by  a  sudden  cold  snap,  big  sittings  are  rarely  made 
except  from  curiosity.  Bantams  laying  eggs  larger  for  their  size 
than  the  large  fowls  will  cover  only  from  7  to  9  of  their  own  eggs, 
and  about  the  same  number  of  the  eggs  of  pheasants. 

Advantages  of  keeping  hens  shut  on  the  nests.  Except  when 
they  are  let  off  to  eat  and  drink,  the  nests  of  sitting  hens  should 
be  kept  closed.  This  is  necessary,  not  so  much  on  account  of  the 
individual  hen  that  may  leave  her  nest  too  long,  as  to  prevent 
interference  and  quarreling,  with  the  breakage  of  eggs  and  the 
general  disturbance  that  such  incidents  occasion.  If  any  are  rest- 
less they  may  be  kept  quiet  by  darkening  the  nests  with  burlap 
curtains,  either  over  the  nest  or  on  the  windows.  Hens  that  will 
not  settle  down  in  a  darkened  room  or  nest  should  be  discarded. 

When  only  a  few  hens  are  set  in  nests  on  the  ground,  and  it  is 
desired  to  manage  them  with  as  little  interference  as  possible,  they 
may  be  let  out  to  feed  singly  or  in  pairs,  and  left  to  return  to  the 
nests  of  their  own  accord.  When  large  numbers  are  set  in  the  same 

1 1  have  seen  a  little  native  hen  weighing  less  than  4  pounds  hatch  19  chicks 
from  19  eggs.  A  Brahma  hen  set  on  27  Leghorn  eggs  hatched  21  chicks. 


INCUBATION 


247 


FIG.  277.  Turkey's  nest  in 
cleft  rock,  covered  with 
loose  boards  for  protection 


place  it  is  better  to  let  all  out  at  the  same 
time,  preferably  late  in  the  afternoon,  and 
as  soon  as  they  have  had  feed  and  drink, 
return  them  at  random  to  the  nests.  The 
largest  average  hatches  are  obtained  by  not 
letting  hens  return  regularly  to  the  same 
nests.  One  reason  for  this  is  that  hens  dif- 
fer in  temperature,  and  some  are  so  low  in 
temperature  that,  if  they  sit  on  the  same 
eggs  continuously,  they  will  hatch  no  chicks, 
or  weak  chicks.  It  is  possible  also  that  some 
hens  do  not  move  their  eggs  as  much  as  nec- 
essary. It  has  often 


FIG.  278.     Turkey's  nest 

with  tent-shaped   roof  as 

protection 


been  noted  that  hens  that  sit  closely  and  are 

always  quiet  and  in  the  same  position  on  the 

nest  do  not  bring  off  as  good  hatches  as  the 

more  energetic  and  restless  hens. 

While  the  hens  are  feeding,  nests  should 

be  examined  for  broken  or  soiled  eggs,  and 

attention  given  to  any  that  are  not  in  order. 

Some  poultrymen,  hatching  on  a  large  scale, 

by  natural  methods,  make  banks  of  nests 

with  an  alley  in  the  rear  and  with  access  to 

the  nests  from  the  back  as  well  as  from  the 

front.    When  the  hens  are  let  off  to  feed, 
the  keeper  closes  the 

fronts  of  all  the  nests  and,  going  into  the 
alley,  can  clean  the  nests,  or  give  other  at- 
tention, without  interfering  with  the  hens  or 
being  annoyed  by  them. 

Whatever  arrangement  or  system  of  han- 
dling sitting  hens  is  used,  they  should  be  re- 
leased to  eat  and  drink  at  about  the  same 
time  each  day,  and  at  that  time  nests  and 
eggs  soiled  by  broken  eggs  or  by  dung  should 
be  cleaned,  for  there  is  nothing  more  detri- 
mental to  incubation  than  fouled  eggs  and 
of  goose  in  pasture  nests.  This  trouble  may  be  reduced  to  the 


248  POULTRY  CULTURE 

minimum  by  good  judgment  in  the  selection  of  the  hens  and  eggs 
used,  by  care  in  making  the  nests,  and  by  regularity  in  attention ; 
but  under  the  best  of  conditions  there  will  be  some  breakage,  and 
occasionally  a  hen  unable  to  retain  her  feces  through  twenty-four 
hours  will  soil  her  eggs  and  nest. 

Food  of  the  sitting  hen.  Only  hard  grain  should  be  fed  to  sitting 
hens.  Whole  corn  seems  to  suit  them  best,  but  any  of  the  ordinary 
grains  may  be  given.  Soft  foods  and  wet  mashes,  which  tend  to 
cause  looseness  of  the  bowels,  should  be  avoided,  but  a  little  green 
food  may  be  given  as  a  relish.  The  grain  should  be  in  a  hopper, 
trough,  or  box,  and  fresh  water  should  be  supplied  daily. 

Cleanliness.  During  incubation,  and  especially  if  the  birds  are 
confined  to  indoor  quarters,  as  they  usually  must  be  early  in  the 
season,  and  as  may  be  most  convenient  at  any  time,  cleanliness  is 
of  the  utmost  importance.  The  droppings  of  the  incubating  birds 
are  likely  to  have  an  unusually  offensive  odor,1  and  if  allowed  to 
accumulate,  to  dry,  and  to  be  broken  up  and  mixed  with  the  litter 
or  earth  of  the  floor,  affect  the  whole  atmosphere  of  the  place, 
besides  making  an  earth  floor  so  objectionable  that  hens  will  not 
wallow  in  it  and  thus  keep  themselves  free  from  lice.  Even  when 
the  hens  have,  and  avail  themselves  freely  of,  the  opportunity  to 
dust,  it  is  advisable  to  take  precautions  to  prevent  lice  from  getting  a 
start  in  the  nests.  The  easiest  way  to  do  this  is  to  dust  hens  and 
nests  with  insect  powder  when  set  (or  soon  after),  again  about  the 
middle  of  the  period  of  incubation,  and  a  third  time  just  before 
the  eggs  are  picked.  If  this  is  done,  the  birds  and  nests  should  be 
almost  entirely  free  from  lice  when  the  chicks  hatch.  When  only 
a  few  hens  are  set,  and  the  keeper  is  quick  to  observe  indications 
of  the  presence  of  lice  and  to  take  steps  to  check  them,  routine 
preventive  treatment  may  be  omitted.  Under  other  circumstances 
preventive  measures  are  safest  and,  in  the  end,  more  economical. 

Testing  eggs.  Eggs  should  be  tested  about  the  seventh  day  of 
incubation.  When  the  work  is  carefully  systematized  it  is  usual  to 
set  hens  always  on  the  same  day  of  the  week.  Then  if  the  test  on 

1  The  extraordinary  offensive  odor  of  the  droppings  of  sitting  hens  seems  to  be 
due  in  part  to  their  long  retention  before  evacuation  and  in  part  to  the  tendency 
of  nature  to  take  advantage  of  a  period  of  rest  from  usual  activities,  to  clean  up  the 
system  and  rid  it  of  impurities. 


INCUBATION  249 

the  seventh  day  shows  any  considerable  proportion  of  infertile,  or 
unhatchable,  eggs,  the  good  eggs  remaining  may  be  "  doubled  up  " 
and  a  part  of  the  hens  reset  with  the  next  lot.  A  second  test  is 
usually  made  about  the  fourteenth  day  for  the  detection  and  removal 
of  dead  germs.  It  is  much  more  important  that  these  should  be  re- 
moved than  that  the  infertile  eggs  should  be  taken  away,  for  the 
composition  of  the  infertile  egg  is  not  changed  during  incubation, 
while  the  egg  containing  a  dead  germ  may  rapidly  decompose,  is 
more  likely  to  be  broken  than  an  infertile  egg  or  one  with  a  live 
germ,  and,  if  broken  in  the  nest,  may  spoil  the  hatch. 

The  method  of  testing  eggs  in  incubation  is  substantially  the 
same  as  the  candling  of  market  eggs,  but  the  work  is  usually  done 
with  a  little  more  care.  The  ordinary  incandescent  electric  light, 
when  convenient,  makes  a  most  satisfactory  tester.  An  ordinary 
hand  lamp  or  lantern  may  be  used,  or  if  the  place  in  which  the 
testing  is  to  be  done  has  a  window  toward  the  sun  and  can  be  corrl- 
pletely  darkened,  the  eggs  may  be  tested  by  sunlight  by  placing 
over  this  window  a  shutter,  or  thick  curtain,  having  in  it  a  hole  of 
suitable  size  (an  inch  in  diameter,  or  a  little  larger),  before  which 
the  eggs  may  be  passed.  When  an  artificial  light  is  used  it  may 
be  either  placed  in  a  small  box  with  a  suitable  hole  directly  before 
the  light,  or  fitted  with  a  metal  chimney  with  a  hole  on  one  side.1 
The  egg  to  be  tested  is  held,  large  end  up,  at  the  hole  before  the 
light.  A  strongly  fertile  egg  at  the  seventh  day  will  appear  through 
the  tester  as  in  Fig.  294.  An  infertile  egg  will  be  clear,  but  the 
yolk  may  throw  a  light  shadow.  The  apparent  density  of  the  egg 
will  usually  be  in  proportion  to  the  vitality  of  the  germ,  and  those 
in  which  at  this  time  the  shadow  is  relatively  faint  and  the  line  of 
the  air  cell  not  well  defined  will  not  usually  hatch.  Many  poultry- 
men  leave  these  doubtful  eggs  until  the  second  test ;  but  it  is  as 
well  to  discard  them  at  the  first  test,  for  the  germ  that  does  not 
start  well  is  not  likely  to  produce  a  strong  embryo. 

The  average  hatchable  egg,  tested  with  an  ordinary  light,  shows 
its  development  only  by  the  increasing  density  of  the  shaded  por- 
tion, the  enlargement  of  the  air  cell,  and  the  sharper  definition  of 
the  line  between  the  air  cell  and  the  growing  embryo.  Thin-shelled 
eggs,  or  any  eggs  in  very  strong  light,  may  show  more  of  the  detail 

1  See  description,  p.  171. 


250  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  development.  As  eggs  are  usually  tested  with  an  ordinary  lamp, 
anything  noticeable  in  the  shaded  portion  (as  a  dark  spot,  ring,  or 
lines)  indicates  a  dead  germ,  and  vacillation  of  the  lower  line  of  the 
air  space  shows  that  decomposition  is  well  advanced.  By  slightly 
turning  the  egg  as  held  large  end  up  before  the  light,  the  condition 
of  the  contents  may  be  observed ;  in  the  normally  developing 
fertile  egg  they  appear  solid,  in  the  decaying  egg,  fluid. 

Period  of  incubation.  The  time  required  for  incubation  is  for 
fowls,  2 1  days  ;  pheasants,  from  22  to  24  days  ;  turkeys,  peafowl,  and 
guineas,  28  days  ;  ostriches,  42  days  ;  ducks,  28  days  ;  geese,  from 
30  to  35  days  ;  swans,  35  days,  —  these  figures  giving  the  average 
periods  for  different  types  of  each  kind  of  poultry  and  for  normal 
development.  It  is  noticeable  that  for  the  smaller  kinds  of  poultry 
the  period  of  incubation  is  generally  shorter.  This  is  true  also  of 
different  types  of  the  same  land  of  poultry.  The  eggs  of  small, 
active  birds  hatch  sooner  than  those  of  the  larger,  more  sluggish 
ones.  Broody  birds  of  high  temperature  will  (other  things  being 
equal)  hatch  the  same  eggs  sooner  than  will  those  of  lower  tempera- 
ture. The  young  birds  hatching  long  in  advance  of  the  normal 
average  time  are  likely  to  be  precocious  individuals.  Those  much 
delayed  are  likely  to  lack  vitality.  As  a  rule,  the  best  specimens 
are  those,  which  hatch  promptly  after  having  taken  the  full  period 
for  embryonic  development,  due  allowance  being  made  for  differ- 
ences in  the  type  of  the  bird  and  in  the  birds  incubating  the  eggs. 
In  fowls  a  hatch  of  Leghorns  might  be  complete  in  twenty  days ; 
a  hatch  of  Brahmas  under  the  same  conditions  show  not  an  egg 
picked  at  that  time.  A  difference  of  a  day,  or  even  two  days,  in 
the  apparent  period  of  a  hatch  may  occur,  either  through  failure  of 
the  incubating  birds  to  sit  closely  on  the  eggs  at  the  outset,  or  be- 
cause of  partial  chilling  of  the  eggs  at  a  later  stage  of  incubation. 
In  the  first  case  the  vitality  of  the  young  birds  may  not  be  at  all 
affected  ;  in  the  other  they  are  likely  to  be  weak. 

Chilling  of  eggs  during  incubation.  The  chilling  of  eggs  cannot 
be  wholly  avoided.  A  bird  may  become  sick,  or  perhaps  die  on 
the  nest,  before  its  condition  is  discovered ;  and  occasionally  one, 
though  to  all  appearances  in  good  health,  quits  sitting  and  stands  up 
in  the  nest.  Such  a  case  the  novice  may  at  first  fail  to  distinguish 
from  the  case  of  the  bird  that  stands  up  occasionally  (especially  in 


INCUBATION  25I 

hot  weather)  because  her  eggs  are  making  her  uncomfortably  warm. 
Unless  it  is  known  that  eggs  have  been  chilled  beyond  recovery, 
the  damage  due  to  chilling  can  be  ascertained  only  by  continuing 
incubation,  and  testing  after  a  sufficient  time  has  elapsed  to  plainly 
show  whether  development  has  stopped.  In  cold  weather,  eggs  left 
by  a  bird  for  only  ten  or  fifteen  minutes  may  be  fatally  chilled, 
while  in  warm  weather  a  bird  may  remain  off  for  hours  at  a  time 
without  impairing  the  hatch.  An  actual  chill  probably  always  does 
damage,  but  circumstances  or  superior  hardiness  sometimes  save 
the  germs  in  some  eggs.  Cases  have  been  known  of  vigorous 
chicks  hatching  from  eggs  in  nests  where  most  of  the  germs  were 
destroyed  by  a  chill. 

When  the  eggs  begin  to  hatch.  The  inclination  of  the  mother  is 
to  keep  the  nest  until  she  is  ready  to  leave  it  with  her  young.  In 
houses  where  the  sitters  are  under  control,  it  is  well  now  to  keep  the 
nests  closed.  The  advantage  of  protecting  an  outside  nest  is  empha- 
sized at  this  stage.  A  nest  cover  like  those  shown  in  Figs.  278  and 
279  can  be  completely  closed  by  a  board  in  front  of  the  entrance, 
and  the  sitting  bird  protected  from  outside  interference  at  the  time 
when  it  is  most  dangerous  to  her  brood.  If  she  is  in  good  condition 
it  will  be  no  serious  hardship  for  her  to  go  without  food  and  water 
for  two  or  three  days,  while  if  she  leaves  the  nest,  the  air  may  dry 
the  membranes  in  pipped  eggs  and  there  is  risk  of  her  crushing 
in  the  shells  as  she  returns.  On  all  accounts  she  should  be  allowed 
to  remain  quiet.  Birds  that  become  too  restless  and  crush  their 
eggs  should  be  removed  and  others  substituted,  or  (if  that  cannot 
be  done)  the  eggs  should  be  taken  away. 

To  avoid  losses  at  this  stage  some  poultrymen  who  hatch  mostly 
with  hens  transfer  the  eggs  to  incubators  at  about  the  eighteenth 
day,  returning  the  chicks  to  the  hens  when  dry  and  ready  to  begin 
eating.  When  this  is  not  practicable,  and  the  mother  seems  likely 
to  lose  many  of  the  young  as  they  hatch,  the  eggs  may  be  put  (in 
the  old-fashioned  way)  into  a  flannel-lined  box  or  basket  and  kept 
in  any  safe,  warm  place  until  they  hatch.  The  nests  should  be  ex- 
amined only  to  observe  in  a  general  way  how  things  are  progress- 
ing, and  to  correct  anything  going  wrong.  As  a  rule,  the  hen  that 
seems  to  be  doing  well  should  be  let  alone,  the  hen  that  is  not  doing 
well  relieved  of  responsibility.  When  things  are  going  well,  all  that 


252 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


is  necessary  is  to  remove  the  empty  shells,  in  order  to  give  more 
room  in  the  nest  and  to  prevent  an  unhatched  egg  from  being 
"  capped  "  by  a  shell. 

Helping  birds  out  of  the  shell.  On  the  principle  that  the  bird 
that  has  not  strength  to  get  out  of  the  shell  unassisted  is  not  worth 
keeping,  most  experienced  poultrymen  consider  it  inadvisable  to 
help  them  out.  Few,  however,  rigidly  follow  this  rule.  Espe- 
cially in  hatching  by  natural  methods,  where  the  eggs  are  easy  to 
get  at,  the  attendant  is  likely  to  help  out  of  the  shell  every  chick 

that  seems  to  need  help, 
and  discard  the  weak- 
lings later,  when  re- 
moving the  chicks  from 
the  nests.  This  saves 
the  chick  that  is  held 
in  the  shell  by  some- 
thing else  than  lack  of 
strength  to  make  its 
way  out  under  normal 
conditions.  Such  cases 
occur  when  the  mem- 
branes dry  as  the  chick 
picks  around  the  shell, 
and  when  the  chick 
is  "  mispresented  "  and 
picks  at  the  small  in- 
stead of  the  large  end  of  the  egg.  If  the  drying  of  membranes  as 
eggs  are  picked  is  general,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  moisten  the  nest  with 
tepid  water,  and  also,  if  conditions  are  very  bad,  to  sprinkle  the  floor 
of  the  apartment  liberally.  Except  in  such  circumstances,  it  is  not 
necessary  to  moisten  eggs  in  process  of  incubation  by  the  natural 
method.  In  removing  the  shell  from  a  chick  which  seems  to  need 
help,  the  condition  of  the  blood  vessels  in  the  membrane  should 
be  noted.  While  the  blood  still  circulates  in  them,  nothing  should 
be  done.  The  chick  will  be  injured  or  killed  by  the  bleeding  that 
would  follow  the  removal  of  shell  and  membrane. 

Conditions  of  good  hatching.  Success  in  hatching  by  natural 
methods  depends  on  constant  and  careful  attention  to  every  detail 


FIG.  280.    Hen  with  brood  of  newly  hatched  chicks 


,     INCUBATION  253 

that  may  affect  results.  While  the  natural  method  is  the  only 
one  available  for  those  who  cannot  give  an  incubator  as  close 
attention  as  its  heater  requires,  the  poultry  keeper  who  leaves  sit- 
ting birds  to  themselves  is  taking  chances.  Under  favorable  con- 
ditions a  single  bird  sitting  by  itself  may  make  a  good  hatch.  A 
few  birds  may  do  as  well  if  they  get  along  amicably,  but  good  or 
even  fair  hatches  are  exceptional  under  such  circumstances.  As  a 
rule,  good  results  by  natural  methods  are  secured  only  by  careful 
selection  of  eggs  and  sitters,  careful  preparation  of  nests,  regular 
attention  to  the  wants  of  the  birds,  and  prompt  correction  of  any 
condition  unfavorably  affecting  either  the  germs  in  the  eggs  or  the 
mothers  at  hatching  time.  The  natural  method  of  incubation,  at 
its  season  and  in  its  place,  is  the  more  economical  method,  and 
taxes  the  thought  of  the  operator  less  than  the  other,  but  to  get 
full  results  from  it  the  operator  must  do  his  part  as  faithfully  as  he 
expects  his  birds  to  do  theirs. 

HATCHING  BY  ARTIFICIAL  METHODS 

Responsibility  of  the  operator.  The  modern  incubator  is  a  clev- 
erly designed,  serviceable  mechanism,  but  it  has  its  limitations.  Many 
of  the  troubles  of  incubator  operators  are  due  to  overestimates  of 
the  automatic  capacity  of  incubators,  and  to  the  consequent  neglect 
of  things  to  which  the  operator  should  give  his  personal  attention. 
The  most  successful  operators  are  those  who  watch  their  incubators 
very  closely,  quite  ignoring  the  manufacturer's  claim  that  the 
machine  will  do  its  work  with  a  little  attention  every  twelve  hours, 
and  that  no  serious  harm  will  result  if  the  operator  happens  to 
leave  it  alone  for  twenty-four  hours.  The  facts  as  to  this  are,  as 
the  experienced  operator  has  learned,  that  while  an  incubator  may 
run  for  weeks  without  requiring  attention  except  at  the  regular 
intervals,  it  may  go  wrong  at  any  time,  and  many  hatches  are  lost 
which  might  have  been  saved  had  the  operator  been  on  the  look- 
out to  promptly  correct  wrong  conditions.  When  operations  are  on 
a  large  scale  the  risk  of  loss  is  so  great  that  the  wise  poultry  keeper 
takes  no  unnecessary  chances,  but  looks  after  his  incubators  and 
brooders  early,  often,  and  late.  In  small  operations  it  may  not 
seem  profitable  to  give  the  time  to  this,  and  on  the  actual  value  of 
the  eggs,  or  of  the  chicks  when  hatched,  it  may  not  be  profitable ; 


254 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  281.    Stone  incubator  house  on  plant 
of  E.  O.  Damon,  Hanover,  Massachusetts 


but  considering  such  points  in 
their  general  relation  to  his  work, 
the  poultry  keeper  will  find  that 
he  cannot  afford  to  leave  undone 
anything  that  it  is  in  his  power 
to  do  in  order  to  hatch,  at  the 
most  favorable  season,  the  young 
stock  that  he  needs.  Special 
emphasis  has  been  laid  upon 
this  point,  because  economy  of 
attention  which  amounts  to  neg- 
lect of  incubators  is  the  great  stumblingblock  of  the  small  operator. 

Selection  of  an  incubator.  The 
choice  of  an  incubator  is  a  less 
important  matter  than  is  com- 
monly supposed.  Although  there 
are  manufactured  in  America 
over  a  hundred  differently  named 
incubators,  most  of  them  are  imi- 
tations of  popular  machines,  the 
imitation  being  sometimes  infe- 
rior in  construction  or  different 
in  some  particular,  but  as  often 
equal  to,  and  occasionally  an  im- 
provement on,  the  model.  It  is  notorious  that  some  of  the  best- 
known  incubators  on  the  market 
are  substantially  identical  and  as 
nearly  equal  as  may  be  in  hatch- 
ing results,  the  differences  in 
hatches  of  machines  of  different 
makes  being  no  more  noticeable 
than  differences  in  hatches  from 
machines  of  the  same  make.  It 
is  not  unusual  to  find  poultrymen 
in  the  same  locality  preferring  dif- 
FIG.  283.  Laboratory  building  at  Massa-  ferent  machines.  Even  men  oper- 

chusetts   Agricultural    College.     Incu-  ,  .  ,      . 

bator  room  in  cellar.   (Photograph  from     atmg  m  the  Same  r°°m>  Wlth  the 

the  college)  same  eggs,  may  not  agree  in  their 


FIG.  282.   Laboratory  building  at  Mary- 
land   Experiment   Station.     Incubator 
room  in  basement.    (Photograph  from 
the  station) 


i;    INCUBATION  255 

choice  of  an  incubator.  Some  operators  can  get  good  results  from 
any  machine,  others  cannot  successfully  run  at  the  same  time 
machines  requiring  different  adjustments. 

With  rare  exceptions  new  incubators  of  all  makes  will  hatch 
fairly  well  if  given  sufficient  attention,  but  the  cheaper  machines 
usually  require  much  closer  watching  than  the  higher-priced  ones, 
and  at  best  are  short-lived.  It  is  generally  advisable  for  a  beginner 
to  select  an  incubator  popular  in  his  neighborhood,  because  then  he 
may  profit  more  by  the  experience  and  suggestions  of  other  oper- 
ators. Hot-air  machines  are  now  commonly  preferred  for  indi- 
vidual incubators  of  ordinary  capacity.  In  the  so-called  mammoth 
incubator,  consisting  of  a  series  of  egg  chambers  on  the  same 
heating  system,  hot-water  heaters  are  necessarily  used.  These 
mammoth  incubators  have  the  advantages  of  being  more  econom- 
ical of  fuel,  requiring  less  labor  to  care  for  heaters  and  causing 
less  risk  of  fire,  but  the  regulation  of  temperature  throughout  the 
series  has  not  yet 1  been  brought  sufficiently  under  automatic  con- 
trol to  satisfy  most  operators. 

Manufacturers'  directions  for  operating  incubators.  The  direc- 
tions furnished  with  an  incubator  should  be  followed  at  first  and 
until  the  operator  has  a  well-defined  purpose  in  departing  from 
them.  These  instructions  are  not  exactly  adapted  to  every  situa- 
tion, but  afford  the  best  starting  point  for  the  operator  in  deter- 
mining the  mode  of  operation  best  adapted  to  his  locality.  While 
incubators  are  in  the  main  similar,  most  of  them  have  some 
minor  differences  which  may  affect  the  mode  of  operation,  and 
it  is  presumed  that  the  manufacturer's  instructions  cover  these 
points.  The  manufacturer's  instructions  usually  presuppose  cer- 
tain general  conditions.  They  are  based  on  the  assumption  that 
the  incubator  will  be  operated  in  a  dry,  well-ventilated  cellar 
or  room.  Such  instructions  are  manifestly  inaccurate  for  an  in- 
cubator placed  in  a  damp  cellar,  —  where  the  circulation  of  air 
is  slow  though  perhaps  sufficient  to  provide  oxygen  as  fast  as 
needed, —  and  also  inaccurate  for  machines  in  an  extremely  dry 
location.  A  machine  which  requires  no  moisture  under  average 
conditions  may  require  moisture  in  a  dry  place,  and  in  a  damp 
location  may  need  more  ventilation.  A  machine  which  requires 

1  1911. 


256 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


some  moisture  under  ordinary  conditions  may  hatch  better  with 
no  moisture  if  operated  in  a  damp  place,  and  may  require  much 


FIG.  284.    Cheap  incubator  cellar;   a       FIG.  285.    Small  incubator  house.  (Pho- 
common  type  tograph  from  F.  A.  P.  Coburn) 

more  moisture  than  the  manufacturer's  instructions  call  for  if 
operated  in  a  very  dry  place.  This  topic  will  be  considered  further 
in  a  subsequent  paragraph. 

Manufacturers'  instructions  should  be  supplemented  by  such 
further  .attention  as  is  necessary  to  give  reasonable  assurance  that 


FIG.  286.    Interior  of  an  incubator  cellar  equipped  with  small  incubators 


-     INCUBATION  257 

right  conditions  continue  in  the  intervals  between  the  regular 
hours  for  attending  the  incubator.  This  will  depend  mostly  upon 
the  faithfulness  and  skill  with  which  instructions  have  been  fol- 
lowed, and  upon  the  judgment  used  in  modifying  them  to  suit  local 
conditions,  but  occasionally  also  upon  weather  changes.  Thus,  after 
filling  lamps  and  trimming  wicks,  many  operators  return  in  the 
course  of  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes  to  see  that  lamps  are  burning 
well.  They  also  take  a  look  at  the  incubators,  noting  the  temper- 
ature and  the  condition  of  the  flame  whenever  they  happen  to  be 


FIG.  287.    Interior  of  incubator  cellar  at  Pittsfield  Poultry  Farm,  Pittsfield,  Maine, 

showing  one  side  of  a  mammoth  (Hall)  incubator  of  six-thousand-egg  capacity 

(Photograph  from  Pittsfield  Farm) 

near  them.  In  extreme  cold  weather  or  in  high  winds  they  watch 
the  incubators  very  closely,  for  it  is  under  such  conditions  that  the 
ordinarily  automatic  regulator  is  most  likely  to  become  erratic. 

Selection  of  eggs  for  artificial  incubation.  Considering  only  the 
matter  of  incubation,  selection  of  eggs  need  not  be  as  rigid  for 
artificial  as  for  natural  incubation.  When  the  eggs  are  to  be  turned 
in  the  trays  they  must  be  of  uniform  size  or  many  may  be  broken 
in  turning.  When  eggs  are  turned  by  hand,  by  shuffling  on  the 
tray,  uniform  size  is  not  so  essential,  although  as  a  rule  it  is  not 
desirable  to  use  those  varying  much  from  the  average  size  of 


258  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  lot.  Eggs  with  irregular  and  defective  shells  are  often  hatched 
artificially,  when  by  the  natural  method  they  would  be  likely  to 
be  broken.  Even  a  cracked  egg  may  be  patched  with  sticking 
plaster,  or  with  a  piece  of  paper  gummed  over  the  crack,  and 
successfully  incubated.  The  use  of  ill-formed  and  defective  eggs 
is  not  advised  except  in  case  of  scarcity  of  perfect  eggs,  when  it 
may  be  better  to  fill  up  the  incubator  with  such  eggs  as  are. avail- 
able than  to  wait  until  the  required  number  of  selected  eggs  can 
be  obtained.  The  eggs  used  should  be  as  fresh  as  possible.  It  is 
desirable  that  they  be  from  vigorous  stock  that  is  known  to  be  pro- 
ducing strongly  fertile  eggs,  but  as  a  rule  the  quality  of  the  eggs 
secured  for  first  hatches  is  doubtful  —  to  be  determined  only  by 
the  result. 

Preliminary  regulation  of  heat.  A  new  incubator,  or  one  that 
has  been  out  of  use  for  some  time,  should  be  run  empty  for  several 
days,  no  eggs  being  put  into  it  until  it  is  adjusted  to  and  running 
steadily  at  103°.  It  will  require  several  hours  to  bring  the  egg 
chamber  back  to  that  temperature  after  cold  eggs  are  placed  in  it. 
Then  the  actual  process  of  incubation  begins. 

Routine  work  of  incubator  operation.  The  ordinary  routine  of 
incubator  operation  is  as  follows  :  The  lamp  is  filled  once  a  day,  and 
the  wick  trimmed  at  that  time  and  also,  if  it  seems  necessary,  after 
twelve  hours.  If  the  lamp  is  small,  or  if  oil  of  inferior. quality  is  used, 
it  is  better  to  remove  the  charred  scale  from  the  wick  twice  a  day. 

Turning  the  eggs  is  begun  on  the  third  day  and  continued  twice 
daily  until  the  eighteenth  day  (for  ducks'  eggs,  the  twenty-fourth 
day),  after  which  the  eggs  should  not  be  turned.  For  a  long  time 
it  was  the  common  practice  to  turn  the  eggs  by  placing  an  inverted 
tray  over  the  tray  containing  the  eggs,  and,  holding  the  two  trays 
tightly  together,  turning  them  so  as  to  place  the  eggs,  turned  half 
over,  in  the  new  tray.  The  method  now  generally  preferred  is  by 
shuffling,  which  only  slightly  changes  the  position  of  the  egg  and 
more  closely  conforms  to  the  conditions  in  natural  incubation. 
Some  machines  have  attachments  for  turning  the  eggs  without 
removing  from  the  machine,  but  operators  generally  prefer  to  take 
them  out. 

Cooling  the  eggs  begins  simultaneously  with  turning.  Until  the 
seventh  day  the  cooling  incident  to  the  removal  of  the  eggs  for 


.     INCUBATION  259 

turning  is  sufficient.  After  that,  at  one  turning  each  day  they  are 
kept  out  of  the  machine  until  cool  to  the  touch,  the  time  ordinarily 
required  being  from  ten  to  thirty  minutes,  according  to  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  room  and  the  development  of  the  embryos,  which,  as  they 
increase  in  size,  retain  the  heat  longer.  In  warm  weather  a  much 
longer  time  may  be  required.  Cooling  is  discontinued  at  the  same 
time  as  turning.  Cooling  is  sometimes  done  by  simply  leaving 
the  door  of  the  egg  chamber  open,  but  that  does  not  expose  the 
eggs  uniformly  to  the  air. 

Testing  is  done  at  any  time  from  the  third  or  fourth  to  the 
seventh  day,  and  again  from  the  twelfth  to  the  fourteenth  day. 
The  object  of  testing  as  early  as  development  will  show  is  to 
remove  the  infertile  eggs,  which,  if  taken  out  early,  are  salable  for 
culinary  purposes.1  At  the  later  tests  the  eggs  containing  dead 
germs  are  removed. 

A  record  of  each  hatch  is  usually  kept  by  the  incubator  operator, 
either  on  a  card  kept  on  the  machine,  or  in  a  notebook.  In  this 
record  is  noted  the  number  and  description  of  the  eggs  set,  the 
temperature  of  the  egg  chamber  at  regular  intervals,  the  number 
of  infertile  eggs  and  dead  germs  removed  at  the  tests,  and  any 
irregularities  which  might  affect  the  hatch.  This  routine  work  is 
all  simple  and  essentially  mechanical. 

Factors  in  artificial  incubation.  To  correctly  adjust  ventilation 
and  moisture  is  the  special  task  in  incubator  operation.  This  will 
be  found  easy  or  difficult  according  to  whether  the  operator  has 
so  placed  the  machine  that  its  ordinary  adjustments  suit,  or,  if  it 
is  placed  otherwise,  has  used  good  judgment  in  estimating  in  what 
way  and  how  much  the  conditions  vary  from  conditions  in  which 
the  machine  was  designed  to  be  operated,  and  in  making  the  appro- 
priate changes. 

Ventilation  and  moisture  questions  in  incubation  are  very 
closely  related — interdependent.  It  is  claimed  for  some  incu- 
bators that  they  need  no  moisture,  and  for  others  that  the  ven- 
tilation in  them  is  automatic.  Such  claims  hold  only  for  the 
average  condition  to  which  a  machine  is  adjusted  as  it  leaves  the 

1  An  infertile  egg  that  has  been  incubated  is  stale  (the  staleness  depending 
on  the  period  of  incubation)  but  may  be  as  good  as  the  ordinary  run  of  market 
eggs  in  hot  weather. 


260  POULTRY  CULTURE 

factory.  Even  for  approximately  average  conditions  it  is  found 
that  if  the  instructions  of  the  manufacturer  indicate  that  moisture 
is  to  be  supplied  in  uniform  quantity,  they  leave  ventilation  to  be 
regulated  by  the  operator ;  and  if  ventilation  is  to  be  constant, 
moisture  is  to  be  regulated  according  to  the  judgment  of  the 
operator.  These  things  are  generally  implied,  if  not  always 
plainly  expressed.  Though  the  operator  may  overlook  them  at 
first,  experience  soon  shows  him  what  he  must  do. 

The  source  of  moisture  in  incubation.  The  eggs  incubated  furnish 
the  moisture  in  incubation.  An  egg  is  from  60  to  65  per  cent 
water  and  has  a  porous  shell.  Exposed  to  ordinary  temperatures, 
the  contents  of  an  egg  gradually  dries  up  through  evaporation  of  its 
water.  The  rate  and  amount  of  evaporation  under  incubation  may 
be  found  by  weighing  the  eggs  at  intervals.  Experiments  to  deter- 
mine this  point  have  been  made  at  several  experiment  stations.  In 
nineteen  days  of  incubation  a  fertile  egg  may  lose  by  evaporation 
as  much  as  1 7  per  cent  of  its  original  weight ;  the  least  loss  re- 
corded in  an  experiment  is  1 1  per  cent.  On  this  (11  per  cent) 
basis  a  setting  of  eggs  weighing  26  ounces  would  lose  by  evapora- 
tion 2.86  ounces.  It  is  estimated1  that  this  amount  of  moisture,  if 
distributed  evenly  through  nineteen  days,  would  be  sufficient  to 
saturate  the  air  in  a  nest/<??/r  times  an  hour  throughout  the  entire 
period.  In  other  experiments  the  percentage  of  evaporation  was 
still  higher.  Atwood2  estimates  that  "one .hundred  fertile  eggs  of 
average  size  will  lose  234.9  grams,  or  8.28  ounces,  during  the  first 
five  days  of  incubation  ;  341.8  grams,  or  12.05  ounces,  during  the 
next  seven  days;  and  352.8  grams,  or  12.44  ounces,  during  the 
next  seven  days." 

Use  of  ventilation.  The  essential  function  of  ventilation  in  arti- 
ficial incubation  is  to  remove  the  moisture  and  gases  exhaled  by 
the  eggs.  In  an  improperly  designed  incubator,  ventilation  might 
be  necessary  to  carry  off  the  fumes  of  the  lamp  entering  the  egg 
chamber.  In  any  incubator,  ventilation  must  provide  for  the  re- 
moval of  moisture  to  allow  normal  evaporation  from  the  egg.  As 
the  condition  of  the  egg  is  affected  by  the  condition  of  the  egg 

.    l  Day,  "  Humidity  in  Relation  to  Incubation,"  Bulletin  No.  163,  Ontario  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture. 

2  Bulletin  No.  73,  West  Virginia  University  Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 


FIG.  288.   Eighteen  hours        FIG.  289.    Second  day         FIG.  290.    Forty  hours 


FIG.  291.    Third  day  FIG.  292.    Fourth  day  FIG.  293.    Fifth  day 


FIG.  294.  Fertile  egg  seen       FIG.  295.    Fertile  egg,       FIG.  296.    Chick  just  be- 
through  tester,  seventh  day  fourteenth  day  fore  hatching 

DEVELOPMENT    OF    CHICK    IN    INCUBATION 

(Photographs   from    E.  T.  Brown,    made  by  E.  C.  Hearson,  London,  England. 
Figs.  288-293  and  296  show  contents  of  egg  with  shell  removed) 


261 


262 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


chamber,  so  the  condition  of  the  egg  chamber  is  affected  by  the 
condition  of  the  apartment  in  which  the  incubator  is  operated. 
Thus  the  problem  of  ventilation  becomes  a  matter  of  the  proper 
adjustment  of  the  machine  to  its  atmospheric  environment,  to  secure 
the  normal  evaporation  of  the  eggs.  If  the  atmosphere  of  the  apart- 
ment is  relatively  dry,  a  ventilator  of  fixed  opening  may  remove 
moisture  from  the  egg  chamber  too  fast,  and  the  air  in  it  will  be- 
come so  dry  that  the  rate  of  evaporation  from  the  eggs  will  be 
too  high.  Then  evaporation  could  be  checked  by  moistening  the 
air  (wetting  the  floor)  of  the  room,  by  placing  moisture  pans  in 

the  egg  chamber,  or  by 
reducing  the  ventila- 
tor opening.  Deficient 
evaporation  would  be 
remedied,  in  an  incu- 
bator with  supplied 
moisture,  by  removing 
water  from  the  egg 
chamber,  by  increasing 
the  ventilator  open- 
ing, or  by  increasing 
the  ventilation  and 

reducing  the  humidity  of  the  air  in  the  room ;  in  a  nonmoisture 
machine  the  deficiency  would  be  remedied  by  the  two  means  last 
mentioned. 

Measuring  ventilation.  The  standard  gauge  of  ventilation  is 
the  rate  of  evaporation  in  natural  incubation.  Comparison  may  be 
made  either  on  a  basis  of  the  size  of  the  air  cell  as  observed  by 
testing,  or  by  weighing  eggs  artificially  incubated  from  time  to  time 
and  comparing  the  loss  of  weight  with  the  standards  experimen- 
tally determined  from  natural  incubation.  With  suitable  scales  each 
tray  used  may  be  weighed  empty  and  the  weight  marked  on  it, 
weighed  with  the  eggs  when  filled,  and  afterwards  as  often  as  de- 
sired. The  data  as  given  for  one  five-day  and  two  seven-day  periods 
are  not  adapted  to  this  purpose.  As  it  is  desirable  to  discontinue  the 
handling  of  eggs  after  the  eighteenth  day,  the  best  arrangement  is 
to  make  the  weighings  at  the  close  of  the  sixth,  twelfth,  and  eight- 
eenth days.  For  six-day  periods  the  loss  of  weight  is  approximately 


FIG.  297.    Egg  just  before  exclusion  and  partially 
excluded  chick 


INCUBATION  263 

ten  ounces  on  each  hundred  average  eggs,  and  on  this  basis  the 
proper  loss  of  weight  for  any  number  of  eggs  is  readily  computed. 
It  should  be  understood  that  the  shrinkage  in  natural  incubation  is 
not  uniform,  and  that  equally  good  hatches  would  probably  be  ob- 
tained on  any  evaporation  between  the  1 1  per  cent  observed  at  the 
Ontario  station  and  the  1 7  per  cent  observed  at  the  West  Virginia 
station,  —  possibly  between  wider  limits,  though  it  seems  improb- 
able that  the  limit  could  be  moved  much  farther  up  or  down  without 
affecting  the  result.  When  it  is  not  convenient  to  weigh  eggs,  it  is 
advisable  (especially  for  the  novice)  to  run  check  lots  of  eggs  under 
hens,  using  two  or  more  hens  if  possible,  that  the  check  may  not 
be  invalidated  by  a  poor  sitter  or  by  accident.  A  further  advantage 
in  check  hatching  with  hens  is  that  a  right  amount  of  evaporation 
does  not  necessarily  insure  a  hatch,  and  that  the  results  from  the 
hens  afford  checks  on  other  points  which  may  need  investigation. 

Management  of  the  incubator  at  hatching  time.  The  excuses 
for  disturbing  the  hen  at  this  time  do  not  apply  to  the  incubator. 
From  the  time  when  the  eggs  are  last  turned  and  cooled  (on 
the  eighteenth  day)  until  the  chicks  have  ceased  hatching,  it  is 
as  well  to  let  them  alone.  The  temperature  tends  to  rise  at  this 
time,  and  may  be  allowed  to  go  to  104°  or  105°,  but  if  it  runs 
higher,  the  flame  should  be  reduced.  All  chicks  that  are  to  hatch 
should  be  out  within  twenty-one  days  (ducks,  twenty-eight  days) 
from  the  time  of  the  beginning  of  incubation,  though  the  eggs  of 
large  breeds  may  run  a  little  longer.  Eggs  that  have  been  run  at 
too  low  a  temperature,  or  have  been  chilled,  are  likely  to  be  delayed 
and  to  give  rather  weak  chicks.  Such  matters,  and  any  other  points 
shown  by  the  record  which  would  affect  the  hatch,  should  be  given 
consideration  in  dealing  with  belated  hatches.  It  is  usual  to  leave 
the  young  birds  in  the  incubators  from  twelve  to  thirty-six  hours 
after  the  conclusion  of  the  hatch.  When  the  incubator  is  provided 
with  a  nursery  (under  the  egg  tray)  the  birds  are  allowed  to  drop 
into  it,  where  they  have  more  room  and  leave  more  room  on  the 
tray  for  the  late  comers. 

Accounting  for  results.  Consideration  of  results  and  the  causes 
affecting  them  should  be  made  with  some  care  after  the  hatch. 
This  is  as  important  when  the  hatch  is  good  as  when  it  is  unsat- 
isfactory. When  good  results  are  obtained  notwithstanding  some 


264  POULTRY  CULTURE 

unfavorable  condition  or  irregularity  during  incubation,  it  is  espe- 
cially important  to  note  carefully  the  amount  of  deviation  from  the 
normal  condition  or  from  approved  practice.  As  a  rule,  occasional 
or  moderate  variation  from  prescribed  conditions  will  not  materially 
affect  results,  although  a  wider  deviation,  or  too  many  slightly  un- 
favorable conditions  occurring  simultaneously,  might  cause  a  poor 
hatch.  On  this  account  any  noticeable  variation  from  conditions 
which  it  is  designed  to  maintain  throughout  the  period  of  incu- 
bation must  be  regarded  as  a  possible  cause  of  an  unsatisfactory 
hatch,  and  must  further  be  considered  a  possible  cause  of  mortality 
in  the  young  birds,  and  perhaps  of  lack  of  vitality  in  those  that 
survive  to  maturity. 

Causes  of  poor  hatches.  The  causes  of  poor  hatches  have  been 
indicated  in  preceding  paragraphs,  but  it  is  worth  while  to  summarize 
them  here  and  to  comment  on  some  points.  A  fertile  egg  with 
germs  of  normal  vitality,  when  incubated  naturally,  will  (barring 
accident)  produce  in  due  time  a  vigorous  bird.  Failure  to  do  so 
indicates  lack  of  fertility  or  vitality,  or  is  evidence  of  neglect  or 
accident.  It  cannot  be  assumed  that,  with  all  conditions  and  factors 
right,  the  failure  of  the  embryo  to  develop  is  normal.  It  must  be 
assumed  that,  if  all  the  facts  were  known,  the  cause  of  a  poor  hatch 
in  any  case  would  be  plainly  apparent.  It  is  not  always  possible  to 
know  all  the  facts,  yet  in  a  majority  of  cases  the  known  facts  show 
causes  sufficient  to  account  for  the  results,  as  will  appear  if  the 
operator,  instead  of  making  mental  comparisons,  will  write  down 
systematically  the  conditions  of  a  good  hatch,  and  opposite  each 
item  note  the  condition  in  the  hatch  under  consideration. 

The  general  causes  of  poor  hatches  are  (I)  poor  eggs  and  (2) 
wrong  management.  For  the  quality  of  the  eggs  the  responsibility 
is  with  the  breeder  or,  where  all  operations  are  in  the  same  hands, 
is  to  be  considered  in  connection  with  the  subject  of  breeding.  The 
determination  of  the  hatching  quality  of  the  eggs  is  a  necessary 
preliminary  to  consideration  of  the  conditions  of  incubation.  In  by 
far  the  greater  number  of  cases  of  poor  hatches  with  incubators, 
the  quality  of  the  eggs  is  unknown,  the  operator  having  no  check 
of  any  kind  on  his  results.  In  such  cases  he  is  all  at  sea,  and  any 
consideration  of  how  points  in  management  may  have  affected 
results  is  mere  speculation,  except  when  it  is  known  that  some 


INCUBATION  265 

fault  in  incubation  would  have  made  a  good  hatch  impossible,  no 
matter  how  good  the  eggs.  If  it  is  known  that  eggs  from  a  certain 
lot  are  hatching  80  per  cent,  either  under  hens  or  in  other  incu- 
bators, a  much  lower  hatch  in  any  case  is  reasonably  conclusive 
evidence  that  the  hatch  was  not  properly  handled.  In  such  a  case 
the  experienced  operator  knows  that  something  went  wrong  during 
incubation,  though  he  may  not  know  what  it  was ; 1  the  inexpe- 
rienced operator  is  likely  to  blame  the  machine.  In  a  sense  it 
may  be  the  fault  of  the  machine,  but  the  operator  is  responsible 
for  the  machine.  It  is  his  business  to  know  its  limitations  and  to 
see  that  everything  essential  to  successful  incubation  is  done. 

Common  errors  in  operating  incubators.  The  most  prevalent 
faults  in  the  management  of  incubators  are  (i)  irregular  and  defi- 
cient attention  and  (2)  poor  judgment  in  ventilation  and  moisture. 
Errors  of  the  first  class  are  easily  corrected  if  the  operator  can  look 
after  the  work  at  frequent  intervals,  and  if  he  gives  his  attention 
to  it.  Errors  of  the  second  class  are  more  difficult  to  overcome. 
They  can  be  definitely  ascertained  only  when  other  causes  of  poor 
hatches  have  been  eliminated.  They  are  affected  by  variations  in 
general  atmospheric  conditions,  by  the  volume  of  air  and  the  venti- 
lation in  the  apartment  in  which  the  incubators  are  placed,  and  by 
the  number  of  incubators  in  the  apartment.  The  best  adjustments 
are  soonest  found  when  several  incubators  of  the  same  make  are 
operated  at  the  same  time  on  eggs  of  the  same  kind,  and  slight 
variations  in  ventilation  and  moisture  are  made  in  the  different 
machines. 

1  The  most  remarkable  case  of  this  kind  that  I  have  known  was  reported  to  me 
by  one  of  the  most  successful  growers  of  winter  chickens.  From  two  incubators  of 
36o-egg  capacity,  set  with  eggs  from  the  same  lot,  he  took,  on  the  same  day,  from 
one  machine  299  chicks,  from  the  other  a  few  over  300  (the  exact  number  I  do 
not  now  recall).  Three  months  later  he  still  had  the  299  chicks  from  the  first  in- 
cubator, but  not  a  single  chick  of  the  second  lot  remained  alive.  They  had  died 
at  first  by  the  score,  then  in  smaller  numbers  until  all  were  gone.  As  far  as  the 
operator  knew,  the  incubator  was  run  correctly  throughout  the  hatch,  but  from  the 
results  (the  chicks  being  brooded  under  exactly  the  same  conditions)  he  knew 
that  something  went  wrong. 


CHAPTER  XV 
GROWING  POULTRY 

Growth  a  natural  process.  Organic  creatures  grow  by  the  con- 
sumption and  assimilation  of  suitable  nourishment.  Each,  according 
to  its  kind,  takes  from  the  food  elements  with  which  it  comes  in 
contact  as  much  of  what  is  serviceable  to  it  as  it  can  secure  and  use. 
The  growth  of  an  organism  depends  ( I )  on  its  constitution  (organic 
soundness  and  vitality,  which  determine  its  capacity  for  growth) ; 
(2)  on  its  environment^  (fixed  conditions  which  affect  its  vital 
functions) ;  (3)  on  the  supply  oifood;  and  (4)  on  protection  from  its 
natural  enemies  and  from  accidents. 

Constitution  fundamentally  a  matter  of  inheritance.  From  the 
beginning  of  its  development  as  an  embryo  each  creature  is  sub- 
ject to  environmental  influences.  Within  the  comparatively  brief 
period  of  the  development  and  growth  of  poultry,  environment  has 
little  power  to  mend  and  much  power  to  mar  constitution.  Under 
normal  conditions  of  incubation  a  young  bird,  as  it  comes  from  the 
shell,  possesses  unimpaired  the  constitution  transmitted  to  it  by  its 
parents.  Any  unfavorable  condition  or  circumstance  during  incu- 
bation tends  to  destroy  the  bird's  constitution  and  to  diminish  its 
vitality.  Conditions  of  incubation  under  which  many  eggs  fail  to 
hatch  usually  impair  the  vitality  of  the  birds  which  do  hatch.  It 
is  only  in  rare  cases  that  all  birds  in  a  brood  are  perfectly  devel- 
oped and  apparently  of  good  constitution  and  vitality.  There  is 
nearly  always  a  small  percentage  of  weaklings,  and  often  a  large 
proportion  of  birds  which,  even  under  the  best  of  care,  will  never 
make  ordinarily  good  specimens. 

Initial  selection.  Elimination  of  weaklings  is  the  first  step  in  the 
profitable  management  of  young  poultry.  Although  under  favorable 
conditions  nature  works  steadily  to  bring  constitution,  vitality,  and 

1  Strictly,  environment  includes  food  and  protection,  but  for  convenience  of 
discussion  the  division  is  made  as  above.  The  feeding  of  young  poultry  is  treated 
in  detail  in  the  chapters  containing  the  general  discussion  of  the  subject. 

266 


GROWING  POULTRY  267 

every  organic  function  to  the  normal  condition  of  efficiency,  the 
growing  period  is  so  short  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  attempt  to 
work  with  young  birds  that  are  crippled,  underdeveloped,  or  con- 
spicuously lacking  in  vigor.  Unless  a  bird  is  lively,  bright,  and 
strong  on  its  feet  when  the  time  comes  to  take  it  from  the  incu- 
bator or  the  nest,  it  should  be  killed  at  that  time.  Such  birds  rarely 
live  to  marketable  age  and  condition,  and  the  sooner  they  are  put 
out  of  the  way  the  smaller  is  the  loss  on  their  account.  In  addi- 
tion, the  weak  birds  easily  become  the  hosts  of  parasites,  and  are 
least  able  to  resist  disease,  while  their  presence  in  a  flock  adds 
greatly  to  the  risk  of  epidemics.  The  natural  reluctance  to  destroy 
birds  which  might  live  and  develop  satisfactorily  makes  many 
poultrymen  too  lenient  in  culling  at  this  stage.  Those  who  suc- 
ceed in  growing,  with  an  insignificant  percentage  of  loss,  poultry 
hatched  and  reared  by  the  natural  method  get  their  results,  as  a  rule, 
by  good  judgment  in  separating  the  weak  from  the  strong  birds 
at  the  earliest  opportunity.  When  the  birds  have  been  artificially 
hatched,  their  appearance  at  the  time  of  taking  from  the  incu- 
bator is  not  so  reliable  an  indication  of  soundness  and  vitality,  for 
troubles  due  to  faulty  incubation  may  not  be  plainly  developed 
at  that  time.  Such,  however,  can  be  removed  as  cases  develop. 
Their  cases  do  not  affect  the  first  culling.  Culling  at  any  time 
in  the  first  few  weeks  of  the  life  of  young  poultry  is  done  on  the 
principle  that  the  bird  that  goes  wrong  at  this  time  is  not  worth 
keeping  longer. 

Preservation  of  vitality  in  young  poultry.  Under  natural  con- 
ditions, physical  and  constitutional  soundness  is  easily  secured, 
and  notable  progress  may  be  made  even  in  building  up  weak 
constitutions.  Though  not  commercially  profitable,  a  little  work  in 
this  line  may  have  great  educational  value.  The  improvement  of 
weak  birds  under  favorable  conditions  clearly  indicates  that  when 
strong  birds  deteriorate,  either  the  conditions  or  the  rations  are  at 
fault.  It  is  usual  to  look  to  the  feeding  for  the  cause  of  trouble, 
but  in  by  far  the  greater  number  of  cases  the  cause  is  to  be  found  in 
the  conditions  to  which  the  birds  are  subjected.  Unfavorable  con- 
ditions have  much  more  serious  effects  on  young  poultry  than  upon 
adults.  Though  independent  of  their  parents  to  the  extent  that 
substitutes  for  the  parents'  care  are  easily  provided,  the  young 


268  POULTRY  CULTURE 

birds  are  very  sensitive  to  unfavorable  conditions,  and  much  more 
susceptible  to  disease  than  adults. 

It  is  commonly  said  that  the  first  three  weeks  are  the  critical 
period  in  the  life  of  a  chick,  —  that  the  chick  which  lives  to  that 
age  is  likely  to  live  to  maturity.  That  is  not  a  general  truth,  for  at 
later  periods  there  are  many  losses  of  chicks  which  were  thrifty  in 
early  life,  but  it  is  true  for  certain  classes  of  cases,  particularly  for 
cases  of  acute  disorders  directly  due  to  wrong  conditions  at  that 
time  or  during  incubation,  and  to  improper  feeding.  In  the  first 
few  weeks  of  the  life  of  young  poultry  mortality  is,  as  a  rule, 
heavier  than  at  any  other  period,  not  only  because  the  birds  are 
actually  more  delicate  then,  but  because,  during  the  early  part  of 
that  period,  those  greatly  lacking  in  vitality,  and  those  affected  by 
unfavorable  conditions  during  incubation,  or  by  wrong  brooder 
temperature,  die  or  begin  to  show  marked  symptoms  of  disease, 
while  it  is  not  until  after  the  second  or  third  week  that  birds  that 
were  originally  vigorous  begin  to  show  the  effects  of  other  conditions 
that  are  radically  wrong,  especially  of  wrong  feeding.  Favorable 
conditions  and  good  management  at  this  time  help  (sometimes  a 
great  deal)  to  remedy  troubles  originating  in  the  parent  stock  or  in 
incubation.  On  the  other  hand,  unfavorable  conditions  and  bad 
management  at  this  stage  of  development  will  have  bad  effects  and 
often  spoil  young  birds  beyond  remedy.  It  is  possible  by  good  care 
to  grow  good  birds  under  unfavorable  conditions,  but  it  is  doubtful 
whether  in  any  case  this  can  be  done  at  a  profit  when  the  value  of 
labor  is  considered.  Most  poultry  keepers  who  persist  (unsuccess- 
fully) in  trying  to  grow  poultry  under  unfavorable  conditions  fail 
because  they  either  will  not  or  cannot  do  for  the  poultry  the  work 
which  the  circumstances  demand. 

Overcrowding  the  prime  cause  of  trouble  in  growing  poultry. 
Although  other  causes  may  seem  more  disastrous  at  times,  there  is 
no  other  wrong  condition  as  prevalent  as  overcrowding.  Whatever 
the  kind  of  poultry  kept,  and  whether  natural  or  artificial  methods 
of  rearing  are  used,  the  almost  universal  tendency  is  to  overcrowd 
the  birds  both  as  to  the  numbers  in  a  specified  area  and  as  to  the 
continuous  use  of  land  for  poultry.  The  remarkable  results  occa- 
sionally secured  under  intensive  conditions  seem  to  make  more 
impression  on  the  average  poultry  keeper  than  do  the  failures 


GROWING  POULTRY  269 

which  are  the  common  experience  of  those  who  overcrowd  grow- 
ing poultry.  One  reason  for  this  is  that,  taking  the  exceptional  in- 
stance as  proof  that  crowding  is  not  itself  detrimental,  they  look 
elsewhere  for  the  cause  of  their  troubles.  In  cases  where  crowded 
poultry  gave  good  results  a  full  statement  of  conditions  will  invari- 
ably show  that  other  conditions  were  exceptionally  favorable,  —  the 
stock  was  uncommonly  vigorous,  the  land  was  fresh,  the  weather 
was  favorable,  the  keeper  was  very  skillful,  and,  it  may  be  added, 
very  fortunate.  The  different  kinds  of  poultry  differ  in  capacity  to 
withstand  the  effects  of  crowding,  but  in  all  kinds  of  poultry  it  will 
be  found  the  rule  that  in  order  to  keep  the  stock  up  to  a  high 


FIG.  298.  Growing  chickens  on  range  at  Pittsfield  Poultry  Farm.  (Photograph 
from  Pittsfield  Farm) 

standard  of  development,  the  growing  birds  require  conditions  much 
more  favorable,  and  more  nearly  natural,  than  those  which  they 
require  when  mature. 

What  constitutes  overcrowding.  Overcrowding  cannot  be  pre- 
cisely denned  in  terms  of  number  of  birds  and  area  of  coop  or 
brooder,  or  of  yard  or  land.  Indoors  it  is  a  question  of  air  rather 
than  of  area  ;  outdoors,  a  question  of  land  not  polluted  by  the  drop- 
pings of  poultry,  and  free  from  germs  of  poultry  diseases  and  from 
poultry  parasites  which  harbor  in  the  soil.  In  the  natural  state,  and 
under  approximately  natural  conditions  in  domestication,  all  kinds 
of  poultry  are  hatched  and  reared  in  small  groups,  or  broods.  The 


FIG.  299.    Cloth  shades  over  brooder- 
house  yards  at  Cornell  University 


FIG.  300.    Grass  range  with  corn 
grown  at  the  sides  for  shade 


FIG.  301.    Chickens  in  permanent 
house  in  old  orchard 


FIG.  302.    Chickens  in  colony  houses 
in  young  orchard 


FIG.  303.    In  the  field  after  the  corn       FIG.  304.    Roosting  quarters  at  Cornell, 
has  been  cut  open  on  three  sides 

SOME    FEATURES    OF    GOOD    PRACTICE    IN    GROWING    CHICKENS 

(Fics.  299  and  304  are  photographs  from  New  York  State  Agricultural  College  at 

Cornell  University) 
270 


GROWING  POULTRY 


271 


FIG.  305.    Six-weeks  ducklings  at 

Weber  Brothers'  duck  farm.   Fruit 

trees  just  set  out  in  yards 


number  of  young  birds  in  a  single  natural  brood  rarely  exceeds  ten, 
the  number  in  a  group  of  such  broods  is  rarely  greater  than  twenty- 
five  or  thirty.  The  mothers,  with  their  young,  forage  either  in- 
dependently or  in  groups  of  two  or  three  broods.  The  different 

broods  usually  separate  at  night, 
if  accommodations  permit.  If 
several  mothers  with  large  broods 
sit  close  together,  it  will  usually 
be  found  that  some  of  the  young 
soon  show  the  effects  of  crowd- 
ing, especially  when  they  are  in 
a  small  coop  or  in  a  corner,  and 
when  the  circulation  of  the  air 
is  slow,  —  for  the  movement  of 
the  air  is  slightly,  if  at  all,  influ- 
enced by  the  number  of  birds  at 
the  spot,  while  the  condition  of  the  air  depends  on  the  number  of 
birds  breathing  it.  This  is  equally  true  as  to  the  air  in  a  brooder.  If 
the  mothers  are  kept  separate,  or  have  an  opportunity  to  follow  the 
natural  inclination  to  keep  the  broods  separate  at  night,  there  is  no 
trouble  from  crowding  at  that  time. 
After  the  young  birds  are 
weaned,  they  will,  if  left  to  them- 
selves, keep  well  distributed.  It  is  a 
common  practice  at  that  time,  how- 
ever, to  combine  broods  into  larger 
groups  before  putting  them  into 
new  quarters ;  from  putting  too 
many  birds  into  small,  ill-ventilated 
coops,  and  from  the  tendency  of 
the  birds  to  huddle  together  when 
they  are  moved  to  new  quarters  and 

the  natural  groups  are  broken  up,  this  stage  of  the  life  of  young 
chickens  is  especially  full  of  troubles  due  to  overcrowding,  aggra- 
vated, in  many  cases,  because  it  comes  just  at  the  season  when 
weather  conditions  make  crowding  most  disastrous. 

In  the  artificial  rearing  of   poultry  larger  numbers  of  young 
birds  are  placed  together  from  the  first.    The  primary  object  is  to 


FIG.  306.   Chickens  in  double  piano- 
box  house  in  orchard.    (Photograph 
from  J.  W.  Clark) 


FIG.  307.    Intensive  methods  used  when  plant  was  established 


FIG.  308.    Colony  plan  adopted  after  a  few  years'  experience  with  intensive 
methods ;  houses  close  together,  but  moved  yearly 


FIG.  309.    Method  now  in  use ;  colonies  well  scattered  and  extensive  range 

FROM   INTENSIVE  TO   EXTENSIVE   METHODS   OF   GROWING   CHICKENS 
AT   CORNELL  UNIVERSITY 

(Photographs  from  New  York  State  Agricultural  College  at  Cornell  University) 

272 


GROWING  POULTRY 


273 


economize  the  cost  of  equipment  and  labor  by  making  the  groups  as 
large  as  possible.  In  a  properly  heated  and  ventilated  brooder  the 
number  of  young  birds  may  be  much  larger  than  in  the  natural 
group,  but  must  still  be  small  compared  with  the  seeming  capacity 
of  the  compartment.  Common  experience  has  taught  the  neces- 
sity of  keeping  young  poultry  of  all  kinds  in  comparatively  small 
groups,  wholly  or  partly  separated,  either  by  partitions  or  fences 
or  by  distance.  This  is  the  general  practice  in  the  communities 
where  poultry  growing  is  most  flourishing. 

The  poultry  farmer  in  Rhode  Island  keeps  his  chickens  in  flocks 
of  from  twenty-five  to  thirty-five.    The  grower  of  winter  chick- 
ens in  eastern  Massachusetts 


FIG.  310.   A  part  of  Fig.  309, 


showing  more  plainly  how  the  colonies  are  distributed 

usually  keeps  them,  after  weaning,  in  flocks  of  fifty.  That  is  the  stand- 
ard, though  occasionally  from  seventy-five  to  one  hundred  may  be 
put  into  a  house  large  enough  to  accommodate  them.  In  both  cases 
the  coops  and  houses  used  give  small  floor  space  per  chicken  but  are 
open  and  well  ventilated,  allowing  an  abundant  supply  of  fresh  air. 
In  any  coop  or  house  the  floor  is  renovated  as  often  as  necessary  by 
removing  accumulated  droppings.  If  the  floor  is  of  earth  a  part  of 
the  floor  is  removed  with  the  droppings,  and  a  new  floor  of  earth 
may  be  put  into  the  house  at  regular  intervals.  If  the  floor  is  of 
wood  it  may  be  covered  with  a  coating  of  earth  or  litter.  As  long 
as  the  droppings  in  the  house  or  coop  remain  dry,  they  do  no  harm. 
Out  of  doors  suitable  sanitary  conditions  are  not  so  easily  main- 
tained. It  is  natural  to  suppose  that  if  poultry  can  remain  night 
after  night  on  a  suitable  floor  containing  the  nightly  accumulations 


274  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  droppings  of  perhaps  a  week  or  two,  their  outside  run  need  not 
be  very  large  to  give  equally  good  sanitary  conditions.  Nor  need 
it  be  if  the  grower  can  give  the  birds  the  care  which  will  compen- 
sate for  the  lack  of  the  advantages  of  a  range  supplying  their  wants 
in  abundance.  This  cannot  be  done  when  poultry  growing  is  on  a 
considerable  scale  or  on  an  economic  basis.  The  yard  or  range  must 
be  large  enough  to  furnish  green  food.  A  yard  that  is  in  grass 
must  be  of  such  size,  or  so  stocked,  that  the  grass  will  keep  grow- 
ing and  be  clean.  It  is  not  enough  that  the  grass  simply  maintain 
itself,  tramped  down,  soiled,  and  affording  no  food.  In  the  best 
practice  young  chickens  are  put  on  grassland  which  has  had  no 
poultry  on  it  during  the  preceding  season.  The  grass  is  mowed 
close  when  the  chickens  are  put  out,  and  the  coops  are  placed  at  such 
intervals  that  the  young  chickens  will,  under  ordinary  conditions, 
keep  the  grass  down  just  enough  to  make  mowing  unnecessary. 
For  goslings  the  practice  is  much  the  same,  except  that  it  is  usual 
to  confine  them  to  a  limited  strip  until  they  have  grazed  it  down,  and 
then  to  move  them.  Ducklings  seem  less  affected  by  foul  ground 
than  other  young  poultry,  but  a  run  on  grass,  rye,  or  other  young 
grain  will  make  a  marked  difference  in  the  quantity  of  ground 
grain  consumed,  and  they  will  show  plainly,  both  in  actions  and  in 
condition,  the  advantage  of  a  change  from  foul  to  fresh  ground. 
Young  turkeys,  peafowl,  guineas,  and  pheasants  all  seem  to  be 
even  more  affected  by  foul  ground  than  chickens,  but  it  is  a  question 
whether,  if  they  were  equally  docile  and  contented  under  restrictions, 
any  difference  in  this  respect  could  be  found. 

Overcrowding  in  most  cases  unnecessary.  The  worst  cases,  both 
in  the  city  and  in  the  country,  are  found  where  the  ground  available 
is  more  than  ample  to  give  the  poultry  favorable  conditions,  but  is 
not  utilized,  either  from  false  ideas  of  economy  or  from  sheer  negli- 
gence. Young  poultry  of  the  smaller  kinds,  grown  in  towns  or  in 
the  suburbs  of  cities,  usually  have  to  be  kept  in  wire-covered  runs 
until  large  enough  to  be  safe  from  cats.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing 
to  see  in  one  of  these  runs  three  or  four  times  as  many  birds  as 
should  be  in  it,  and  to  see  the  run  kept  on  the  same  spot  for  weeks 
and  even  months,  while  all  around  it  there  is  good  grass  growing 
and  going  to  waste.  On  farms  devoted  largely  to  poultry  growing 
it  is  not  unusual  to  find  the  young  stock  grown  year  after  year  on 


GROWING  POULTRY 


275 


the  same  land,  though  there  is  abundance  of  fresh  land  available. 
A  poultry  grower  ought  by  all  means  to  consider  economy  in  labor, 
but  not  at  the  cost  of  general  deterioration  of  stock,  or  of  some  loss 
of  development  on  every  bird  grown  in  a  season.  When  poultry 
of  any  kind,  at  any  age,  are  kept  on  land  not  suitable  for  them,  while 
better  land  lies  idle  or  is  occupied  only  by  something  the  poultry 
would  not  injure,  the  methods  of  managing  are  radically  wrong. 

Warmth  the  first  requirement  of  young  poultry.  If  the  young 
birds  are  kept  warm  and  comfortable  they  will  keep  quiet  most  of 
the  time  for  the  first  few  days.  If  they  are  with  natural  mothers 
it  is  advisable  to  keep  the  mothers  on  their  nests  or  in  a  close  coop 
in  which  they  will  brood  the  young  almost  constantly  until  the 
young  birds  themselves  show  a  strong  disposition  to  forage.  After 
that  it  is  better  to  confine  the  mother  and  give  the  young  liberty, 
with  free  access  to  her  until  they  are  strong  enough  to  follow  her 
without  tiring.  In  most  kinds  of  poultry  this  will  be  several  weeks. 
Under  the  usual  conditions  in  domestication,  and  particularly  where 
large  numbers  are  kept,  it  is  advisable  to  keep  natural  mothers  con- 
fined until  the  young  are  weaned.  For  chickens  this  will  be,  in 
spring  and  summer,  five  or  six  weeks ;  for  ducklings,  about  three 
weeks  ;  for  goslings  with  hens,  about  ten  days.  The  later  goslings, 
hatched  by  the  geese,  and  the  young  turkeys  and  other  less  domes- 
tic kinds  of  poultry,  are  usually  allowed  to  run  with  the  adults 
throughout  the  season.  When  birds  lay  only  at  the  breeding 
season,  nothing  is  gained  by  separating  parent  and  young  when 
the  young  no  longer  need  brooding. 

Brooding  temperatures.  The  temperature  in  natural  brooding  is 
the  same  as  for  incubation,  but  it  is  tempered  or  reduced  by  the 
young  bird's  keeping  partly  or  wholly  from  under  the  mother,  and 
by  the  mother  bird's  taking  a  half-rising  posture.  The  young  may 
remain  wholly  under  the  mother  at  first,  but  soon  begin  to  sit 
under  her  with  their  heads  out,  thus  getting  all  the  warmth  that 
contact  with  her  body  and  that  of  other  young  will  give,  and  at 
the  same  time  getting  a  full  supply  of  fresh  air.  As  they  grow 
(or,  in  very  warm  weather,  while  still  small)  they  may  not  stay 
under  her  at  all  at  night,  but  still  benefit  by  proximity  to  the 
heat  of  her  body.  If  they  become  wet  or  chilled  at  any  time,  they 
resort  to  the  natural  brooder  and  are  at  once  in  contact  with  heat 


276 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


of  a  temperature  which  quickly  warms  and  dries  them.  Except  for 
what  are  called  (perhaps  erroneously)  low-temperature  l  hens,  the 
temperature  in  natural  brooding,  with  suitable-sized  broods,  is  never 
injuriously  wrong.  The  regulation  of  temperature  is  automatic  and 

nearly  perfect. 

Regulation  of  heat  in  artificial 
brooding.  The  operation  of  a 
brooder  presents  problems  similar 
to  the  problems  of  artificial  in- 
cubation. The  general  problem 
is  to  provide  a  substitute  for  the 
FIG.  3n.  Brooder  house  at  Massa-  heat  of  the  parent  bird.  It  is 
chusetts  Agricultural  College.  (Pho-  „  .  . 

tograph  from  the  college)  economically  necessary  that  this 

be  done  at  a  cost  for  equipment 

and  labor  that  will  leave  a  profit  on  the  work.  While  it  is  not 
required  that  a  uniform  temperature  be  as  steadily  maintained  as 
in  incubation,  the  artificial  brooder  must  be  in  a  measure  auto- 
matically regulating  for  temperature,  and  fresh  air  must  be  supplied 
to  the  young  birds  in  the  hover  in  much  larger  quantities  than  to 
the  eggs  in  the  egg  chamber  of  the  incubator.  The  difficult  point 
is  to  secure  free  ventilation  while  maintaining  a  sufficiently  high 
temperature.  This  is  commonly 
made  more  difficult  in  practice 
through  the  tendency  of  poultry- 
men  to  economize  capital,  space, 
and  labor  by  putting  into  each 
brooder  compartment  the  largest 
number  of  chicks  or  ducklings 


FIG.  312.    Brooder  house  at  Goodrich 

Farm,  West   Duxbury,   Massachusetts 

(Photograph  from  Goodrich  Farm) 


that   it    is   considered    possible 

to  keep  in  it.    To  effect  sales, 

manufacturers  often  overrate  the  capacity  of  a  brooder.  The  capacity 

of  a  brooder  of  fixed  size  to  contain  growing  birds  is  obviously 

1  This  is  one  of  many  points  not  experimentally  determined.  The  "  low-tem- 
perature "  fowl  seems  so  to  the  touch.  She  lacks  vitality  and  may  be  sick.  She 
may  be  nervous  and  irritable,  and  worry  or  neglect  her  young.  Her  temperature  is 
certainly  not  so  far  below  normal  that  it  alone  would  seriously  affect  the  young 
birds,  but  as  young  birds  with  such  mothers  do  quite  regularly  show  bad  effects, 
it  is  assumed  that  this  is  due  to  a  wrong  attitude  of  the  mother  toward  them,  or 
that  such  a  mother  draws  vitality  from  her  young  instead  of  conserving  theirs. 


GROWING  POULTRY 


277 


constantly  decreasing,  when  measured  in  numbers  of  birds  con- 
tained. The  capacity  of  a  brooder  is  often  given  (correctly  for  a 
time)  at  the  number  of  newly  hatched  birds  that  may  be  kept  in 
it ;  but  the  need  of  reduction  of  numbers  as  the  birds  grow  is  not 
always  sufficiently  emphasized.  This  form  of  misrepresentation 
is  sometimes  excused  on  the  ground  that  at  the  average  rate  of 
loss  the  losses  of  chicks  or  ducklings  will  offset  the  increase  in 
size  of  those  which  remain,  but  there  can  be  no  valid  excuse  for 
instructions  that  are  most  misleading  when  the  birds  are  doing 
best.  Experienced  growers  generally  put  into  individual  (heated) 
brooders  rated  as  having  a  capac- 
ity of  from  seventy-five  to  one 
hundred  only  about  half  those 
numbers,  and  into  the  compart- 
ments of  brooder  houses  they  put 
the  young  birds  in  lots  of  about  one 
hundred,  though  for  some  time 
each  compartment  might  safely 
carry  two  hundred  or  more.  As 
has  been  said,  under  natural  con- 
ditions all  young  birds  are  pro- 
duced and  reared  in  small  groups.  FIG.  313.  Fireless,  or  "cold,"  brooders 

Massing  them   in   large    numbers     at  Provincial  Poultry-Breeding  Station, 


Edmonton,  Alberta.  (Photograph  from 
the  station) 


creates  conditions  both  unfavor- 
able and  dangerous  to  them.  In 
exceptional  cases  a  large  group  may  thrive,  but  as  a  rule  the  birds 
do  best  when  kept  in  lots  not  many  times  larger  than  the  natural 
groups.  In  general  practice,  brooders  and  brooder  houses  are 
adapted  to  this  principle. 

Methods  of  artificial  brooding.  There  are  three  general  meth- 
ods of  providing  heat  without  natural  mothers  :  (i)  by  fireless,  or 
"cold,"  brooders;  (2)  by  individual  brooders,  each  heated  by  a 
lamp  or  a  stove ;  (3)  by  a  hot- water  system  arranged  to  make  one 
heater  and  system  of  pipes  furnish  heat  to  a  series  of  brooding 
compartments. 

Cold  brooders  are  small  boxes,  usually  with  a  capacity  of  from 
twenty-five  to  fifty  young  chickens,  in  which  the  birds  keep  warm 
through  contact  and  the  conservation  of  the  heat  from  their  bodies. 


278  POULTRY  CULTURE 

As  commonly  constructed,  the  sides  are  of  wood,  paper,  or  metal, 
with  holes  for  the  passage  of  the  birds.  The  top  is  composed  of 
one  or  more  "  quilts  "  of  lightly  padded  cheesecloth  so  adjusted  that 
the  center  is  depressed  and  the  little  birds  nestle  to  it  instead  of 
crowding  into  the  corners.  In  a  heated  room  or  brooder  house,  or 
elsewhere  in  moderate  weather,  these  brooders  may  work  very  well, 
but  birds  in  them  require  close  attention  at  first,  and  they  are  not 
adapted  to  low  temperatures.  The  fireless  brooder,  as  developed  to 
date,1  is  not  adapted  to  regular  use  on  an  extended  scale.  Some 
of  the  so-called  fireless  brooders  are  used  with  a  hot- water  jug  or 
bottle  for  low  temperatures. 

Lamp-heated  brooders.  Lamps  are  generally  used  when  poultry 
is  grown  artificially  on  a  small  scale.  Lamp  brooders  are  of  many 
different  makes,  but  are  nearly  all  built  on  the  same  principle. 
They  consist  of  a  box  heated  by  an  outside  lamp,  the  hot  air  from 
the  lamp  being  conveyed  to  the  upper  part  of  the  interior,  and  the 
passages  for  the  chicks  being  small,  to  prevent  a  circulation  of  air 
which  would  make  the  temperature  too  low.  In  some  brooders  a 
second  compartment,  partly  heated  by  the  warmer  air  from  the  first, 
is  provided.  Though  mostly  on  the  same  general  model,  brooders 
of  this  type  vary  somewhat  in  construction,  especially  in  quality  of 
materials,  workmanship,  and  adjustments.  With  proper  attention, 
most  of  them  will  give  very  satisfactory  results.  As  a  rule,  the 
cheaper  brooders  require  closest  attention  and  involve  greatest  risk 
of  fire.  In  all  lamp  brooders  the  danger  from  fire  is  greater  than 
with  incubators,  first,  because  of  the  dust  raised  by  the  birds,  and 
next,  because  the  lamp  is  more  exposed.  Somewhat  different  styles 
of  these  brooders  are  made  for  indoor  and  for  outdoor  use,  the  out- 
door style  being  built  to  protect  the  brooding  compartment  and 
lamp  from  the  weather.  Poultrymen  generally  prefer  to  use  the 
indoor  style  in  a  small  house  or  under  a  shed.  Kerosene  lamps  are 
most  used  for  heat,  but  gasoline  has  been  found  satisfactory.  A 
small  system  of  brooders  may  be  heated  from  the  same  reservoir 
of  gasoline.  The  risk  and  the  labor  of  caring  for  many  lamps  tend 
to  limit  the  use  of  individual  brooders. 

Pipe  brooder  systems.  Hot-water  heaters  and  pipes  were  used 
at  an  early  stage  of  the  development  of  artificial  brooding.  In  the 

1  1911. 


GROWING  POULTRY 


279 


early  brooders  of  this  type  the  pipes  were  run  under  a  close  hover, 
and  the  heater  used  was  seldom  large  enough  to  maintain  the  de- 
gree of  heat  required  in  extreme  cold  weather.  In  such  a  brooder 
the  supply  of  fresh  air  under  the  hover  was  often  inadequate,  the 
temperature  was  likely  to  run  up  with  a  high  outside  temperature 
and  almost  certain  to  go  down  with  low  outside  temperature,  and 
results  —  as  was  to  be  expected — were  very  uneven.  The  defects 
were  most  serious  for  the  youngest  birds  but  diminished  in  impor- 
tance as  the  birds  grew,  for  then  they  not  only  required  less  heat 
but  contributed  the  warmth  of  their  bodies  to  keep  up  the  tempera- 
ture through  a  cold  spell.  To  provide  for  these  conditions  many 
houses  were  built  with  individual  brooders  (called  nursery  brooders) 
in  one  end,  for  the  birds  up  to  three  or  four  weeks  old,  and  a  pipe 
brooder  system  in  the  other  end  for  the  older  birds.  Methods  of 
reenforcing  the  heat  furnished  by  the  pipes  were  also  tried.  In 
many  houses  two  heaters  had  been  installed  to  provide  for  the 
contingency  of  accident  to  the  heater  in  regular  use,  and  in  cold 
weather  both  heaters  were  used.  Supplementary  coils  of  pipe  were 
also  placed  on  the  wall  of  the  house,  usually  at  the  north  side  but 
sometimes  on  the  south,  to  keep  up  the  temperature  of  the  house 
outside  the  hovers.  All  these  things  helped.  Eventually  experi- 
menters worked  out  the  simple  plan  of  using  a  heating  system  of 
sufficient  capacity  to  maintain  the  required  temperature  under  open 
or  loosely  covered  pipes  at  any  season.  This  is  the  type  of  brooder 
now  giving  the  best  results  for  artificial  brooding  on  a  large  scale. 
It  is  described  in  detail  in  the  chapter  on  poultry  houses.  It  is 
not  perfect ;  even  when  equipped  with  the  best-known  regulators 
at  the  heater  and  with  electric  regulators  on  the  pipes,  it  will  not 
run  reliably  without  close  •  attention,  but  of  the  many  different 
methods  of  brooding  chicks  in  large  numbers  that  have  been  and 
are  being  tried  this  is  giving  the  best  results  of  all  those  in 
general  use.  The  real  test  of  an  appliance  or  of  a  method  is  its 
adaptability  to  ordinary  conditions  and  to  a  variety  of  conditions  of 
location  and  management.  Inventors  of  appliances  and  promoters 
of  methods  and  systems  may  test  them  under  the  most  favorable 
conditions,  adjusting  everything  to  suit.  Under  such  circumstances 
good  results  are  often  obtained  with  appliances  or  by  methods 
which  in  common  use  are  not  found  satisfactory. 


280  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Temperature  in  artificial  brooding.  The  best  temperature  condi- 
tions are  secured  if  it  is  possible  for  the  young  birds  to  come  in 
contact  with  from  105°  to  106°  of  heat  without  huddling  together, 
and  to  have  any  desired  lower  degree  of  heat.  They  may  live  and 
thrive  at  a  lower  range  of  temperatures.  With  access  to  the  high- 
est temperatures  mentioned,  they  remain  mostly  where  the  tem- 
perature is  lower,  but  have  the  extra  heat  if  they  need  it.  It  is 
customary  to  take  the  temperature  of  a  brooder  at  the  level  of  the 
birds  in  it,  and  at  that  point  95°  is  considered  the  right  tempera- 
ture ;  but  if  a  brooder  is  so  constructed  that  a  chilled  chick  or 
duckling  can  find  heat  greater  than  95°  only  by  contact  with  others, 
the  birds,  when  cold,  will  huddle  together.  Provided  ventilation  is 
sufficient,  and  the  young  birds  can  get  to  any  comfortable  lower 
temperature,  it  is  much  safer  to  have  the  brooder  heat  at  its  source 
too  high  than  to  take  the  risk  of  too  low  temperatures.  Whatever 
style  of  brooder  is  used  it  is  essential  that  the  young  birds  have  access 
both  to  heat  in  a  well-ventilated  place  and  to  fresh  air  at  a  moderate 
degree  of  heat.  In  a  properly  constructed  individual  brooder  these 
conditions  are  secured,  according  to  the  size  and  style  of  the 
brooder  and  the  age  of  the  birds,  by  the  adjustment  of  the  hover 
and  the  ventilation  of  the  compartment  in  which  it  is  placed,  and 
further  (in  brooders  of  more  than  one  compartment)  by  a  down- 
ward gradation  of  temperatures  as  compartments  remove  from  the 
source  of  heat.  In  the  so-called  open-pipe  system  the  highest 
temperatures  are  secured  either  by  placing  a  movable  hover  over 
the  pipes  or  by  filling  the  floor  with  earth,  sand,  or  litter  to 
bring  the  birds  nearer  the  pipes,  or  by  both  means.  In  a  compart- 
ment five  feet  wide  a  complete  range  of  temperatures  from  106° 
or  over  downward  may  be  had  by  placing  a  loose  cover  (with  or 
without  side  fringe,  according  to  the  temperature  of  the  house) 
over  one  half  of  the  pipes,  leaving  the  other  half  open,  the  floor 
being  raised  or  lowered  to  suit  the  size,  of  the  birds. 

Regulation  of  temperature  in  brooders.  The  proper  tempera- 
ture is  indicated  by  the  thermometer  and  by  the  attitude  of  the 
birds.  The  thermometer  gives  the  absolute  temperature  at  a  suit- 
able point,  showing  whether  it  is  sufficient.  The  attitude  of  normal, 
healthy  birds  should  show  whether  the  extent  of  the  area  of  highest 
temperature  is  sufficient  and  the  ventilation  satisfactory.  It  should 


GROWING  POULTRY  281 

also  show  whether  there  is  a  uniform  gradation  of  conditions  from 
the  warmest  part  of  the  brooder  to  a  point  where  the  heat  does 
not  sensibly  affect  the  heat  of  the  apartment.  In  the  old  type  of 
pipe  brooder,  with  permanent  hovers  built  over  the  pipes,  and  close 
fringes  to  retain  the  heat,  the  ventilation  in  the  hover  was  in- 
sufficient ;  the  change  from  inside  to  outside  temperature  was  too 
abrupt ;  there  were  practically  but  two  conditions  (neither  perhaps 
satisfactory)  between  which  the  birds  must  choose.  If  birds  huddle 
together  at  a  temperature  which  an  accurate  thermometer  shows  is 
sufficient  for  normal  chicks  or  ducklings,  that  is  evidence  that  the 
birds  are  not  normal, —  that  either  they  are  constitutionally  of  low 
vitality,  or  that  they  have  been  chilled ;  if  birds  huddle  outside 
the  brooder  or  at  a  low  temperature,  the  presumption  is  that  they 
have  not  access  to  a  temperature  high  enough  to  be  attractive. 
If  exposure  was  short,  and  the  birds  are  promptly  warmed,  the  hud- 
dling should  last  but  a  short  time,  and  no  serious  ill  effects  should 
follow ;  if  the  tendency  to  huddle  becomes  chronic,  the  behavior 
of  the  birds  becomes  unreliable  for  regulation  of  the  brooder. 
If  such  a  lot  of  birds  will  not  recuperate  quickly  when  separated 
into  groups  so  small  that  crowding  cannot  be  especially  injurious, 
and  kept  at  the  usual  high  temperature  at  the  level  of  the  birds  in 
brooding,  they  may  be  regarded  as  injured  beyond  remedy.  Some 
may  live  to  make  marketable  poultry,  but  a  profit  and  loss  account 
kept  with  such  a  lot  usually  shows  a  loss. 

As  in  incubation,  the  regulation  of  temperature,  while  partly 
automatic,  requires  such  oversight  that  wrong  conditions  may  be 
promptly  corrected.  The  successful  growers  of  large  numbers 
of  poultry  by  artificial  methods  almost  live  with  their  birds  while 
they  require  special  attention.  Regulators  and  electric  alarms 
may  be  used  to  relieve  them  of  the  necessity  of  unintermittent 
watching,  but  they  never  leave  the  place  without  some  one  to  re- 
spond to  an  alarm,  and  they  make  complete  rounds  of  brooders 
before  retiring  at  night  and  again  the  first  thing  in  the  morning. 
To  make  sure  that  the  birds  will  not  get  so  far  from  the  heat  that 
they  will  not  find  their  way  back  to  it  when  cold,  it  is  usual  to  keep 
an  individual  brooder  closed  until  they  become  familiar  with  it ;  in 
pipe  brooder  houses  it  is  customary,  for  the  first  few  days,  to  con- 
fine them  to  the  space  under  and  near  the  pipes  by  means  of  a  board 


282  POULTRY  CULTURE 

across  the  compartment,  gradually  increasing  the  space  before  the 
pipes  by  removing  the  board  to  a  greater  distance,  until,  when  the 
birds  are  thoroughly  "  hover-broke,"  it  is  removed  altogether. 

Period  of  artificial  brooding.  Under  the  same  circumstances 
and  at  the  same  seasons  the  requirements  of  the  birds  are  the 
same,  regardless  of  the  source  of  heat ;  but,  as  much  of  the  work 
by  artificial  methods  is  done  in  the  fall,  winter,  and  early  spring, 
the  birds  are  often  kept  in  the  brooders  much  longer  than  natural 
mothers  would  brood  them.  One  of  the  principal  advantages  of 
the  artificial  brooder  is  that  it  has  no  other  function  than  to  brood 
young  birds,  so  that  they  may  be  kept  in  it  as  long  as  they  require 
warmth,  while  natural  mothers  (especially  early  in  the  season)  will 
often  wean  their  broods  and  resume  laying  long  before  the  young 
cease  to  need  brooding.  Winter  chickens  are  kept  in  brooders  up 
to  ten  or  twelve  weeks  of  ag6,  according  to  the  weather  and  their 
development.  Ducklings  require  supplied  heat  only  from  three  to 
five  weeks,  according  to  the  season. 

Protection  from  enemies.  Young  birds  are  absolutely  defenseless, 
and,  even  when  constitutionally  strong,  are  physically  frail  in  com- 
parison with  most  of  the  creatures  with  which  they  come  in  contact. 
Allowing  them  to  run  with  larger  poultry,  whether  of  their  own  kind 
or  another,  is  a  disadvantage.  If  allowed  to  run  with  other  stock, 
considerable  numbers  may  be  accidentally  killed  by  being  stepped  on 
by  horses  or  cattle,  or  may  be  destroyed  by  hogs.  Dogs  and  cats  not 
trained  to  let  them  alone  may  be  very  destructive,  and  rats  even 
more  so,  while  almost  every  predatory  wild  animal  or  bird  that 
haunts  inhabited  districts  is  destructive  to  young  poultry.  The 
smaller  the  birds,  the  greater  the  number  of  enemies  they  have  to 
fear ;  the  slower  their  growth,  the  longer  they  require  watching 
and  protection.  Young  chickens  are  hardly  safe  from  persistent, 
hungry  cats  until  six  or  eight  weeks  old,  while  a  young  Pekin  duck 
two  or  three  weeks  old  would  not  be  likely  to  be  molested,  and  gos- 
lings would  not  be  troubled  after  the  first  few  days.  Losses  among 
larger  and  quicker  growing  kinds  are  often  equal  to  or  greater  than 
losses  among  smaller  ones,  because  they  roam  farther  from  home 
and  are  more  exposed  to  attacks  of  larger  wild  animals  and  birds. 

The  most  effective  way  of  protecting  poultry  (young  or  old) 
is  by  destroying  or  driving  away  their  enemies.  Protection  by 


GROWING  POULTRY  283 

confining  the  birds  does  not  suit  either  large  operations  or  the  most 
advantageous  use  of  land ;  it  may  be  necessary  for  young  poultry 
grown  in  towns,  or  even  in  the  country  when  destructive  animals 
are  especially  bold  or  numerous,  but  in  general  it  should  be  the 
object  of  the  poultry  keeper  to  give,  to  his  young  poultry  at  any 
rate,  all  the  liberty  that  they  need  for  the  most  economical  man- 
agement of  the  stock  and  the  best  development  of  the  birds,  and 
this  requires  the  extermination  of  wild  creatures  and  the  restraint 
of  individual  domestic  animals  destructive  to  poultry.1  A  few  of 
these,  if  not  checked,  will  make  such  inroads  on  the  stock  that  the 
immediate  loss  is  heavy,  and  the  effect  on  the  plans  of  the  grower 
is  likely  to  be  far  more  serious. 

Protection  from  parasites.  Freedom  from  lice  and  worms  is  also 
of  more  importance  with  young  poultry  than  with  adults.  Internal 
parasites  (worms)  are  best  prevented  by  keeping  the  young  birds  on 
fresh  ground  and  away  from  the  general  adult  flock.  Healthy,  vig- 
orous young  birds  will  keep  down  external  parasites  (lice),  if  they  are 
given  an  opportunity  to  do  so.  Young  chickens,  turkeys,  etc.  which 
have  access  to  loose  earth  in  gardens  or  fields  should  need  no  treat- 
ment for  lice.  It  is  a  good  plan  to  put  hens  with  broods  onto  a  dry 
earth  floor  for  the  first  few  days,  giving  them  an  opportunity  to  sub- 
due the  parasites  at  the  start.  In  continuous  wet  weather,  when  the 
soil  will  not  pulverize,  or  when  chickens  are  cooped  on  sod,  they 
should  be  dusted  with  an  insect  powder  about  once  a  week  until 
three  weeks  old.  After  that,  under  conditions  at  all  suitable,  there 
should  be  no  occasion  for  the  poultry  keeper  to  consider  giving 

1  The  problem  of  the  relation  of  the  poultry  keeper  to  neighbors  who  keep 
dogs  and  cats  which  worry  or  destroy  poultry  is  often  a  perplexing  one.  What- 
ever may  be  his  rights,  expediency  requires  that  the  poultry  keeper  be  governed 
in  some  measure  by  near-by  public  opinion.  It  is  in  thickly  settled  places,  es- 
pecially in  cities,  that  this  becomes  a  hard  problem.  Sometimes  the  keeping  of 
poultry  is  an  infringement  on  an  ordinance  which  is  overlooked  by  the  authorities 
so  long  as  no  occasion  is  given  for  complaint.  In  such  cases  there  is  nothing  for 
the  poultryman  to  do  but  to  securely  inclose  his  young  poultry.  Where  there  is 
no  prohibition  on  poultry,  the  poultry  keeper  who  confines  his  birds  to  his  own 
premises  can  insist  that  owners  of  cats  and  dogs  which  molest  his  poultry  shall 
pay  damages  and  keep  the  animals  off  his  premises.  Even  in  towns  where  cats 
and  dogs  are  numerous,  most  of  them  are  likely  to  be  inoffensive,  and  if  offenders 
are  known,  a  poultry  keeper  within  his  rights  in  keeping  poultry,  if  he  approaches 
their  owners  tactfully,  can  usually  have  them  restrained  without  arousing  ill  feeling 
between  neighbors.  He  should,  however,  be  sure  of  his  case. 


284  POULTRY  CULTURE 

individual  treatment  for  lice.  Waterfowl  which  have  access  to  water 
in  quantities  sufficient  for  bathing  or  swimming  are  not  likely  to 
be  troubled  with  external  parasites.  When  young  ducklings  and 
goslings  are  brooded  with  hens  and  given  water  only  for  drinking, 
they  are  often  troubled  with  head  lice.  If  the  water  in  the  drinking 
vessel  is  deep  enough  to  allow  the  bird  to  get  the  head  well  under 
water,  it  will  keep  the  lice  off  its  head  and  neck  in  this  way ;  on 
other  parts  of  the  body  they  are  less  dangerous,  and  the  bird  can 
get  at  them  with  its  bill.  Young  poultry  hatched  and  reared,  arti- 
ficially are  less  afflicted  by  lice,  but  it  is  not  well  to  take  it  for 
granted  that  incubators  and  brooders  are  free  from  them ;  young 
birds  in  brooders  will  appreciate  opportunities  to  dust  themselves, 
and  so  make  assurance  of  freedom  from  the  parasites  doubly  sure. 

Growth  proves  the  materials  and  work  of  the  poultry  grower. 
If  the  birds  grow  normally  the  sum  total  of  factors  affecting  growth 
must  be  approximately  right,  deficiencies  being  offset  by  advantages 
in  other  directions,  —  as  faulty  conditions  by  extra  attention,  slight 
weakness  in  stock  by  very  favorable  conditions,  etc. ;  if  growth  is 
not  normal,  one  factor  must  be  radically  wrong  or  several  factors 
slightly  wrong,  and  the  total  of  deficiencies  so  great  as  to  have  a 
marked  effect  on  the  general  result.  Normal  growth  of  poultry 
is  continuous  and  rapid  ;  in  the  most  rapidly  growing  common 
kinds  of  poultry  —  geese  and  the  larger  breeds  of  ducks  —  the  rate 
of  growth  is  so  great  that  the  fact  that  the  birds  are  growing  fast  is 
self-evident.  In  chickens  and  young  turkeys  growth  is  not  so  notice- 
able, but  it  is  plainly  seen  by  comparing  the  birds,  while  small,  with 
younger  birds,  and,  after  they  are  weaned,  either  with  younger  birds 
or  with  adults. 

Rate  of  growth.  This  has  been  determined  experimentally  only 
for  chickens  and  ducklings.  Though  the  number  of  experiments 
is  small,  it  is  probable  that,  these  being  apparently  average  in- 
stances, the  figures  are  very  near  the  ordinary  averages  and  may 
fairly  be  taken  as  standards  for  roughly  ascertaining  whether  the 
rate  of  growth  is  normal. 

The  rate  of  growth  of  chickens  of  different  breeds  and  types  is 
surprisingly  uniform  for  the  first  ten  or  twelve  weeks.  Differences 
between  individuals  of  the  same  stock  are  more  marked  than  dif- 
ferences in  averages  for  different  breeds.  Leghorn  chicks  from 


GROWING  POULTRY 


285 


FIG.  314.    Goslings  three  or  four 
days  old 


medium-sized  to  large  Leghorn  stock  (males  weighing  5^  pounds 
and  upward,  females  4  pounds  and  upward)  will  often  weigh  as 

much  at  ten  or  twelve  weeks  as 
Brahma  chicks  from  parents  of 
more'  than  double  the  Leghorn 
weights.  After  that,  chicks  of  the 
larger  breeds  rapidly  outgrow  the 
others,  growing  much  faster  and 
for  a  longer  period.  The  ordinary 
young  chicken  weighs  about  il 
ounces  (rather  less  than  more) 
when  twenty-four  hours  old.  At 
three  to  four  weeks  it  should 
weigh  1.  pound  ;  at  six  to  eight 
weeks,  I  pound ;  at  nine  to  eleven  weeks,  2  pounds ;  at  three 
months  a  chicken  of  the  medium-weight  breeds  should  weigh  from 
2±-  to  3  pounds,  the  cockerels 
generally  being  the  heavier  birds, 
though  the  largest  pullets  will 
often  outweigh  the  average  cock- 
erels. From  this  time  birds  of 
this  class  should  grow  at  the 
rate  of  about  I  pound  a  month 
(a  little  less  for  smaller  speci- 
mens, a  little  more  for  larger  ones)  until  from  six  to  eight  months 
old,  when  they  should  be  full  grown  and  of  average  weight  for 

specimens  of   the  kind,   in  fair 
flesh  but  not  fat. 

In  the  smaller  breeds  the  period 
of  growth  is  a  little  shorter,  but 
not  so  much  as  would  be  expected, 
considering  the  rapidity  of  early 
growth  and  the  size  of  the  birds 
at  maturity.  In  the  larger  breeds 
growth  is  very  rapid.  The  best- 
Fic.3i6.  Goslings  nine  weeks  old  growing  specimens  in  all  breeds 

are  usually  a  little  ahead  of  the  others  from  the  start.    In  Asiatics 
these  specimens  often  begin,  about  the  ninth  or  tenth  week,  to  grow 


FIG.  315.    Goslings  three  weeks  old 


286 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  317.    White  Leghorns,  thirteen 
weeks  old 


very  fast.  It  is  not  unusual  for  large  specimens  to  weigh  close  to 
4  pounds  at  three  months,  and  to  grow  at  an  average  rate  of  over 
2  pounds  a  month  for  the  next  four  months,  putting  on  an  average 

of  over  an  ounce  a  day  for  that 
period.  This,  however,  is  much 
better  than  ordinary  growth  with 
average  stock.  For  such,  i^ 
pounds  a  month  would  be  good 
growth.  Males  usually  grow  both 
a  little  faster  and  a  little  longer 
than  females. 

The  rate  of  growth  of  duck- 
lings is  much  greater  for  the  first 
three  months  than  that  of  chick- 
ens. Ordinary  Pekin  ducklings 
weigh  about  2  ounces  when  hatched.  At  three  to  four  weeks  they 
should  weigh  I  pound  ;  at  six  to  eight  weeks,  from  4  to  4  \  pounds  ; 
at  ten  weeks,  from  5^  to  6  pounds,  the  largest  and  fattest  duck- 
lings even  more.1  Unlike  young  chickens,  the  ducklings  that 
have  been  well  fed  are  at  this  stage  very  fat.  Those  intended 
for  market  are  killed  at  from  nine  to  twelve  weeks  of  age.  Those 
reserved  for  breeding  purposes  continue  to  grow,  but  more  slowly. 
Usually  they  lose  weight  for  a  while  through  the  loss  of  their 
"baby  fat."  At  five  to  six  months  of  age  Pekin  ducks,  when 
well  meated  but  not  excessively 
fat,  should  weigh  from  6  to  8 
pounds. 

The  rate  of  growth  of  geese 
is  about  the  same  as  that  of 
ducks,  allowance  being  made  for 
the  original  difference  in  size. 
The  newly  hatched  gosling  is 
about  double  the  weight  of  the 
duckling.  At  ten  weeks  the  gos- 
ling of  any  of  the  large  breeds  or 
their  crosses  should  weigh  from  9  to  12  pounds,  and  at  five  or 
six  months  should  have  added  about  50  per  cent  to  this  weight. 

1  I  have  weighed  goslings  that  at  three  months  weighed  almost  nine  pounds. 


FIG.  318.   White  Wyandottes,  fourteen 
weeks  old 


GROWING  POULTRY  287 

Turkeys  grow  slowly  at  first.  Though  of  different  conformation, 
and  perhaps  looking  much  larger,  the  average  turkey  chick  at  ten 
or  twelve  weeks  is  often  no  heavier  than  a  large  Brahma  cockerel 
of  the  same  age.  The  later  growth  of  the  turkey  is  more  rapid, 
birds  at  eight  or  ten  months  often  weighing  from  1 5  to  20  pounds. 

In  general  it  is  with  the  growth  for  the  first  few  months  that 
the  poultry  keeper  is  most  concerned.  A  large  part  of  the  poultry 
grown  is  disposed  of  within  three  months,  and  (with  some  differ- 
ences in  the  management  of  birds  for  different  purposes)  conditions 
and  methods  that  have  given  normal  development  up  to  that  time 
can  be  relied  upon  to  bring  the  birds  to  maturity  in  good  form  and 
in  good  season.  Young  poultry  that  is  below  normal  at  three 
months  may  be  improved  by  good  care  and  feeding,  but  will  never 
make  first-class  stock  for  any  purpose. 

Separation  of  the  sexes  while  growing.  Separation  of  males  and 
females  at  this  stage  is  necessary  only  with  chickens.  The  time  of 
separating  them  varies  according  to  the  precocity  of  the  cockerels. 
In  the  smaller  breeds,  like  the  Leghorn,  it  is  advisable  to  separate 
the  sexes  when  the  chicks  are  weaned,  for  soon  after  that  many 
of  the  males  become  troublesome.  In  the  Wyandottes,  Plymouth 
Rocks,  and  similar  breeds,  if  the  more  precocious  males  are  re- 
moved as  soon  as  they  begin  to  domineer  over  the  others  and 
among  the  pullets,  the  sexes  may  be  left  together  until  they  are 
three,  four,  or  five  months  old.  In  the  Asiatics  the  sexes  may  be 
kept  together  until  well  grown. 

Separation  according  to  age  and  size.  Of  much  more  importance 
than  separation  according  to  sex  is  separation  according  to  size. 
Especially  is  this  necessary  with  cockerels  intended  for  exhibition 
or  breeding.  The  cockerels  which  at  maturity  will  be  best  are,  as 
a  rule,  not  the  most  precocious.  The  precocious  birds  domineer 
over  the  others,  and  a  cowed  bird  never  develops  as  he  should. 
The  best  conditions  in  this  respect  are  usually  obtained  when  the 
chicks  are  given  at  the  start  sufficient  coop  and  land  room  to  last 
until  they  are  well  grown,  and  the  culls  and  inferior  birds  and  the 
quarrelsome  males  removed  as  occasion  arises,  thus  reducing  the 
numbers  so  that  they  are  never  overcrowded.  Only  an  occasional, 
exceptional  lot  will  then  outgrow  its  quarters,  and  such  cases  can 
be  taken  care  of  by  removing  from  each  overflowed  coop  a  few  of 


288  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  poorer  birds  in  it,  putting  the  surplus  from  several  lots  into 
new  quarters. 

Disturbances  should  be  avoided.  With  all  their  docility,  poultry 
of  all  kinds  are  very  sensitive  to  alarms,  to  rough  treatment,  and 
to  change.  These  things  affect  the  growth  of  young  poultry  just 
as  much  as  they  do  the  laying  and  breeding  qualities  of  adults.  It 
is  especially  desirable  to  avoid  frequent  separations  and  new  com- 
binations of  groups  of  young  birds,  with  all  the  confusion  incident 
to  such  changes.  While  it  is  preferable  that  a  brood  or  lot  of  young 
poultry  of  any  kind  keep  practically  the  same  quarters  and  range 
throughout  the  growing  period,  that  is  often  impossible.  In  any 
case  the  poultry  keeper  should  try  to  avoid  unnecessary  shifts: 
Where  the  numbers  are  adapted  to  the  land  available  it  should  be 
possible  to  arrange  to  leave  young  poultry  undisturbed,  except  for 
removals  as  mentioned  above,  from  the  time  when  they  are  weaned 
until  they  go  to  the  fattening  coop  or  into  winter  quarters,  accord- 
ing to  the  use  to  be  made  of  them. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
EGG  PRODUCTION 

Egg  production  distinguished  from  reproduction.  Egg  produc- 
tion is  a  part  of  the  process  of  reproduction  in  poultry  performed  by 
the  female,  without  association  with  the  male,  and  yielding  a  product 
immediately  useful  to  man.  Hens  are  generally  used  for  commer- 
cial egg  production,  the  few  eggs  of  other  kinds  of  poultry  occa- 
sionally found  in  the  markets  or  on  tables  being,  as  a  rule,  the 
irregular  surplus  from  flocks  kept  for  breeding.  An  egg  that  has 
not  been  fertilized,  or  that  is  deficient  in  fertility,  may  be  complete 
for  man's  use  for  food,  or  for  any  of  the  manufacturing  processes 
in  which  eggs  are  used.  Whether  those  properties  which  make 
quality  in  the  egg  used  as  food  affect  the  quality  of  the  chick 
when  the  egg  is  incubated  has  not  been  determined.  Presumably 
they  do,  but  no  demonstrations  have  been  made  which  show  it. 
We  may  profitably  use  for  egg  production  hens  that  it  is  not 
advisable  to  use  for  reproduction.  Egg  production  is  in  a  large 
measure,  though  not  wholly  or  regularly,  under  the  control  of  the 
poultry  keeper,  and  may  be  developed  to  the  detriment  of  the  full 
function  of  reproduction.  Subjects  so  related  cannot  be  wholly 
separated  for  discussion  or  study,  but  as  far  as  possible  the  treat- 
ment in  this  chapter  will  avoid  enlargement  upon  points  more 
appropriately  considered  in  the  chapters  on  reproduction. 

Reproductive  organs  of  the  female  the  source  of  eggs.  The 
reproductive  system  of  the  female  consists  of  the  ovaries,  attached 
to  the  backbone  near  the  middle  of  the  back,  and  a  tube,  the  ovi- 
duct, leading  from  the  ovaries  to  the  vent.  There  are  two  ovaries, 
right  and  left,  but  as  a  rule  only  one  is  developed.  Singularly, 
the  conspicuous  function  of  the  ovary  is  to  develop  the  yolk,  —  the 
part  of  the  egg  which  contributes  nothing  to  the  development  of 
the  embryo,  but  is  absorbed  just  before  exclusion  and  affords 
nourishment  for  the  first  few  days.  Each  yolk  is  at  first  a  tiny 
globular  granule.  After  a  bird  begins  to  lay,  the  ovary  presents  the 

289 


290  POULTRY  CULTURE 

appearance  of  a  mass  of  yolks  of  various  sizes  from  full-grown  to  as 
small  as  can  be  seen  with  the  naked  eye.  A  magnifying  glass  will 
show  many  still  smaller.  It  is  commonly  supposed  that  the  number 
of  minute  yolks  is  constitutionally  and  definitely  fixed  in  each  bird, 
—  that  a  bird  cannot  lay  more  than  the  original  number,  that  it 
will  not  lay  all  these  unless  kept  in  proper  condition,  and  that,  by 
skillful  management,  a  bird  may  be  forced  to  produce  in  two  or 
three  years  as  many  of  her  predetermined  quota  of  eggs  as  she 
would  naturally  produce  in  six,  eight,  or  more  years.  It  has  been 
supposed  until  recently  that  the  original  number  of  ovules  in  the 
average  hen  did  not  exceed  five  or  six  hundred.  Observations 
at  the  Maine  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  showed  that  the 
number  which  could  be  counted  with  the  naked  eye  and  a  com- 
mon reading  glass  varied  from  about  fifteen  hundred,  a  number 
several  times  greater  than  fhe  recorded  production  of  the  most 
prolific  hens,  to  more  than  thirty-six  hundred. 

When  the  reproductive  organs  of  the  female  bird  are  function- 
ally active,  each  ovule,  as  it  reaches  maturity,  is  detached  and  passes 
into  the  oviduct.  As  it  passes  down  the  oviduct  it  is  first  covered 
with  the  white,  or  albumen,  which  is  deposited  in  layers,  and  finally 
by  the  lining  membranes  and  the  shell. 

Laying  begins  when  growth  ceases.  Normally 1  laying  begins  at 
maturity,  but  occasionally  immature  birds,  especially  of  the  smaller 
and  more  prococious  breeds,  produce  a  few  small  eggs.  The  prema- 
ture activity  of  the  reproductive  organs  almost  invariably  results  in 
stunted  growth  and  the  postponement  of  the  beginning  of  mature, 
regular  laying.  Premature  laying,  though  of  no  advantage,  is  often 
considered  by  the  poultry  keeper  an  indication  of  reproductive  vigor 

1  The  common  difficulty  in  getting  eggs  from  hens  in  winter,  and  the  tendency 
of  other  kinds  of  poultry  not  to  lay  until  toward  spring,  seems  to  contradict  this. 
But  the  number  of  cases  for  which  the  statement  holds  good  is  so  great  as  to 
create  the  presumption  that  normally  egg  production  in  fowls  commences  immedi- 
ately after  growth  is  accomplished.  The  fact  that  wild  birds  wintering  in  a  tem- 
perate zone  do  not  produce  eggs  until  the  following  season  does  not  prove  that 
under  favorable  conditions  they  would  not.  As  the  subject  is  developed  in  this 
chapter,  the  reader  should  note  that  nearly  every  factor  working  against  winter 
egg  production  from  hens  works  more  effectively  against  the  winter  production 
of  eggs  by  wild  land  birds ;  while,  in  addition,  the  unprotected  wild  bird  is  more 
exposed  to  its  enemies  in  the  fall  and  early  winter  than  at  any  other  season.  What 
happens  in  domestication  may  sometimes  be  a  better  index  of  native  tendencies 
than  the  phenomena  of  wild  life  as  they  appear  to  the  ordinary  casual  observer. 


EGG  PRODUCTION 


291 


and  future  heavy  laying,  and  so  gives  him  little  concern ;  retarded 
laying  is  a  matter  for  serious  consideration.  Although,  as  has  just 
been  stated,  laying  begins  normally  with  cessation  of  growth,  normal 
cases  are  in  a  minority.  In  a  majority  of  cases  laying  does  not  begin 
for  some  time  after  the  bird  is  full  grown.  If  the  delay  is  only  a  few 
weeks  it  hardly  attracts  attention,  and  may  be  explained  either  on 
the  ground  that  development  was  only  seemingly  complete,  or  that 
a  brief  period  must  elapse  after  physical  growth  is  completed  before 
the  period  of  regular  laying  can  begin.  But  when  laying  is  retarded 
for  several  months,  as  it  often  is,  such  explanations  will  not  suffice. 
Causes  of  retarded  laying.  The  things  which  affect  growth  and 
those  which  affect  laying  after  it  has  begun  are  the  common  causes 
of  failure  to  begin  to  lay  at  maturity.  Little  has  been  done  in  the 
line  of  scientific  investigation  of  the  subject,  but  ordinary  observa- 
tion indicates  some  of  these  causes,  and  suggests  the  need  of  inves- 
tigation to  determine  how  circumstances  affecting  the  development 
of  the  body  affect  the  development  of  the  reproductive  organs. 
From  the  commonly  observed  facts  some  reasonable  general  in- 
ferences may  be  drawn. 

1.  A    check   to  growth   at  any  stage    may   retard  laying  at 
maturity.    Many    birds    (not   only   individuals    but  flocks   of   all 
sizes)  do  begin  regular  laying  promptly  upon  attaining  full  bodily 
development.    When  the   situation  in  a  stock  of   birds  of   the 
same  breeding  is  irregular  in  this  respect,  it  will  usually  be  found 
that  the  birds  which  lay  normally  are  those  which  have  grown 
without  interruption,  and  that  when  growth  has  been  in  any  way 
retarded,  the  beginning  of  the  laying  period  is  retarded.    (Appar- 
ently, influences  unfavorable  to  the  development  of  the  body  are 
still  more  unfavorable  to  the  development  of  the  reproductive  or- 
gans.)   It  is  not  unusual  to  find  May-hatched  pullets  laying  earlier 
than  their  sisters  a  month  older,  and  equal  or  superior  to  the  earlier 
pullets  in  development  at  the  beginning  of  egg  production.    The 
difference  is  explained  in  most  cases  by  unfavorable  weather  in 
April  and  early  May. 

2.  Any  disturbance  affecting  the  habits,  nutrition,  or  comfort 
of  a  bird  at  any  previous  stage  of  life  may  retard  laying  at  ma- 
turity.   That  such  disturbances  so  affect  and  check  laying  when 
the  reproductive  organs  are  functionally  active  (or  beginning  to  be) 


292  POULTRY  CULTURE 

has  long  been  observed.  Shifting  from  place  to  place  and  chang- 
ing diet  are  common  methods  of  checking  egg  production  in  pullets 
which  it  is  desired  to  keep  from  laying  in  order  that  they  may  be 
in  better  condition  for  exhibition  or  for  breeding  at  a  later  season. 
Recent  studies  of  the  reproductive  organs  of  hens  at  the  Maine 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station  show  that  the  development  of  these 
organs  should  be  regarded  as  continuous  from  the  earliest  stages  of 
the  growth  of  the  bird,  and  not,  as  has  been  the  common  view,  as  a 
part  of  the  general  development  of  the  bird  until  the  rest  of  the 
organism  is  complete,  and  then  a  special  growth  of  the  organs  of 
reproduction.  It  has  often  been  observed  that  pullets  just  beginning 
or  about  to  begin  to  lay  were  more  sensitive  to  disturbances  and 
changes  than  those  that  had  been  laying  for  some  time.  From  this 
it  has  been  generally  assumed  that  at  the  beginning  of  functional 
activity  the  reproductive  system  of  the  bird  was  especially  sensi- 
tive, and  that  prior  to  that  time  the  reproductive  organs  were 
not  at  all  sensitive.  On  this  theory  the  pullets  are  often  handled 
less  carefully  in  early  life  than  as  they  approach  the  age  when  they 
should  begin  to  produce  eggs.  This  subject  cannot  be  discussed 
exhaustively  here.  So  little  has  it  been  investigated  that  knowledge 
of  it  is  at  almost  every  point  deficient.  It  can  only  be  treated  in 
its  most  obvious  phases  and  in  general  terms.  Although  much 
relating  to  it  is  in  doubt,  enough  is  known  to  show  that  every  con- 
dition and  circumstance  unfavorable  to  the  growth  of  the  body  may 
still  more  unfavorably  affect  the  development  of  the  organs  of  repro- 
duction. Every  one  of  the  numerous  factors  unfavorably  affecting 
growth  must  therefore  be  regarded  as  likely  to  affect  the  reproductive 
system  more  seriously,  and  to  delay  its  functional  activity  far  beyond 
the  time  when  growth  of  the  body  is  complete.  This  theory  explains 
many  cases  of  retarded  egg  production  which  otherwise  seem  inex- 
plicable. Not  all  cases  of  retarded  egg  production  are  due  to  such 
remote  or  indirect  causes.  In  many  cases  direct  causes  are  found 
sufficient  to  prevent  egg  production.  But  when  no  direct  cause  can 
be  found,  it  may  reasonably  be  presumed  that  there  was  a  remote 
cause  (or  causes)  sufficient  to  produce  the  results ;  and  when  it  is 
known,  as  it  often  is,  that  growth  was  retarded  or  interrupted,  the 
cause  of  that  interruption  may  be  considered  a  sufficient  cause  for 
failure  of  egg  production  to  begin  promptly  when  growth  ceased. 


EGG  PRODUCTION 


293 


Conditions  of  egg  production.  Factors  in  laying  may  be  classed 
as  primary  (or  essential)  and  secondary  (or  accidental). 

The  prime  factor  in  egg  production  is  activity  of  the  repro- 
ductive organs. 

Secondary  factors  are  (i)  nourishment,  (2)  regularity,  (3)  com- 
fort, (4)  constitution,  (5)  exercise,  (6)  cleanliness,  (7)  broodiness, — 
these  varying  greatly  in  value,  and  ranking  (as  the  subsequent 
discussion  of  factors  will  show)  about  in  the  order  named. 

Activity  of  the  reproductive  organs  may  be  considered  the 
direct  cause  of  egg  production.  Without  it  not  an  egg  is  produced, 
though  every  other  factor  is  sufficient ;  when  it  is  present,  eggs 
may  be  produced  though  every  other  factor  is  inadequate.  It  may 
be  checked  by  failure  of  secondary  factors,  but  as  long  as  it  con- 
tinues, eggs  are  produced  even  to  exhaustion  of  the  body  and  of 
vitality.  If  the  condition  of  the  reproductive  organs  of  the  bird 
could  be  determined  by  observation,  the  poultry  keeper  might  judge, 
with  some  approach  to  accuracy,  of  the  time  that  must  elapse  before 
a  nonlaying  bird  would  begin  to  lay ;  but  these  organs  are  con- 
cealed within  the  body,  and  the  only  outward  indications  of  their 
condition  are  the  development  and  color  of  the  comb,  and  some- 
times the  increased  activity  of  the  hen  and  a  "  singing  "  as  she 
bustles  about.  None  of  these  signs,  however,  are  infallible.  The 
proof  of  activity  of  the  reproductive  organs  is  given  only  in  eggs. 
This  will  appear  more  clearly  as  the  influences  of  other  factors 
are  discussed. 

Nourishment.  An  ill-nourished  bird  may  produce  some  eggs, 
but  cannot  continue  producing  regularly  for  long  periods.  To  lay 
well  the  bird  must  be  mature,  well-nourished  at  the  outset,  physi- 
cally sound,  able  to  digest  much  more  food  than  required  for  its 
own  maintenance,  and  must  be  fully  supplied  with  food.  With 
activity  of  the  reproductive  organs  and  these  conditions  of  nourish- 
ment a  bird  may  continue  to  lay,  though  other  conditions  are  faulty  ; 
but  no  advantage  in  other  conditions  can  long  compensate  for 
deficiency  in  the  more  essential.  A  common  fallacy,  now  generally 
discarded  by  students  of  the  subject,  makes  activity  of  the  repro- 
ductive organs  dependent  for  its  beginning  as  well  as  for  contin- 
uance upon  a  surplus  of  food  of  proper  composition.  That  this 
view  is  erroneous  is  evident  when,  with  opportunity  to  eat  all  that 


294  POULTRY  CULTURE 

they  wish,  hens  that  are  not  laying  eat  lightly  and  keep  fat  on  a 
light  ration,  and  when,  as  the  hens  begin  to  lay,  the  amount  of 
food  consumed  is  greatly  increased.  This  is  most  apparent  with 
old  hens  that  have  failed,  for  a  while,  to  lay  under  most  favorable 
conditions,  though  stimulated  in  every  possible  way. 

Regularity  and  comfort  are  so  closely  associated  that  they  are 
not  readily  separated  for  consideration.  The  general  physical  con- 
dition of  a  creature  is  affected  by  the  regularity  or  irregularity  of 
its  life.  Effects  of  irregularities  on  particular  functions  may  be  still 
more  marked.  The  reproductive  organs  seem  especially  susceptible 
to  such  influences.  Within  limits,  the  comfort  of  a  creature  de- 
pends as  much  upon  its  condition  as  upon  the  conditions  of  its 
environment :  thus,  a  debilitated  fowl  shows  that  it  is  uncomfort- 
able on  a  cool  morning,  when  to  robust  birds  the  atmosphere  is 
invigorating  and  excites  greater  activity,  and  a  bird  that  is  chilled 
cannot  keep  warm  at  a  temperature  comfortable  for  a  bird  in  per- 
fect health.  On  the  other  hand,  discomfort  often  causes  irregulari- 
ties :  thus,  heat  which  may  not  prostrate  a  bird  may  be  debilitat- 
ing, affecting  digestion  and  egg  production  ;  cold  which  a  bird 
withstands  without  marked  physical  discomfort  may  check  laying ; 
moving  a  bird  from  one  pen  to  an  adjacent  pen  identical  with  it, 
and  with  all  other  conditions  remaining  the  same,  often  checks 
laying  for  days  and  may  stop  it  for  a  long  period.  Irregular  feed- 
ing unfavorably  affects  egg  production,  even  though  the  total 
supply  is  sufficient  and  of  suitable  quality.  Disturbances  in  flocks 
on  account  of  the  presence  of  a  strange  person  or  animal,  and  un- 
usual movements  of  the  attendant,  often  have  an  immediate  and 
marked  effect  of  decreasing  egg  production.  Individual  birds  vary 
greatly  in  susceptibility  to  such  influences,  and  the  difference  be- 
tween small,  nervous  hens,  like  the  Leghorns  and  Hamburgs,  and 
large,  phlegmatic  hens,  like  the  Asiatics,  is  pronounced.  The  facts 
as  to  the  effects  on  egg  production  of  irregularities  of  the  kinds 
mentioned  are  accessible  to  any  one  who  will  keep  a  record  of  egg 
production  and  of  conditions  which  may  affect  it ;  they  demon- 
strate very  clearly  the  importance  of  regularity  in  everything  which 
may  influence  laying.  Such  regularity,  complete  at  every  point, 
is  the  exception  rather  than  the  rule  in  the  management  of  lay- 
ing stock,  nearly  every  one  being  careless  in  some  particular. 


EGG  PRODUCTION 


295 


NOTE.  The  principal  irregularities  affecting  egg  production,  considered  in  the 
order  in  which  they  usually  occur  in  the  management  of  pullets,  are  as  follows : 

(a)  The  change  from  summer  to  winter  quarters.    Under  usual  conditions 
it  is  necessary  that  such  a  change  should  be  made.    While  the  ideal  way  is  to 
start  pullets  as  chicks  in  the  quarters  that  they  are  to  occupy  as  layers,  the  fact 
that  the  old  stock,  or  that  part  of  it  which  is  to  be  renewed,  must  usually  be 
carried  until  about  the  time  when  the  pullets  are  coming  to  maturity  makes  it 
impossible  to  do  this  except  in  a  small  percentage  of  cases.   The  practical  ques- 
tion confronting  the  poultry  keeper  at  this  stage  is  whether  it  will  be  more 
profitable  for  him  to  keep  hens  that  are  likely  to  lay  until  November,  keeping 
the  pullets  out  in  coops  that  are  perhaps  overcrowded,  or  to  dispose  of  the  hens 
(losing  the  profit  on  their  eggs)  and  give  the  pullets  every  advantage.   The  pre- 
vailing tendency  is  to  keep  old  hens  as  long  as  they  lay,  or,  at  any  rate,  as  long 
as  possible  and  still  leave  time  to  renovate  the  houses  and  get  the  pullets  in 
before  winter.    While  this  is  the  common  practice,  it  accounts  for  a  great  deal 
of  the  poor  laying  of  well-developed  pullets  in  early  winter,  and  experienced 
poultrymen  are  generally  agreed  that  the  pullets  ought  to  be  not  only  in  winter 
quarters  but  settled  there  and  beginning  to  lay  when  winter  sets  in.    In  the 
latitude  of  New  York  this  means  that  pullets  so  developed  as  to  be  likely  to 
lay  by  November  should  be  in  winter  quarters  by  the  first  of  October.    If  the 
winter  houses  have  large  yards  attached,  pullets  taken  to  them  from  a  good 
range  may  not  be  much  affected  by  the  change.    If  the  yards  are  small  and  the 
pullets  are  thus  taken  suddenly  from  a  free  life  to  cramped  quarters,  a  serious 
check  to  laying  may  be  the  result.    Pullets  so  advanced  that  they  are  likely  to 
lay  early  in  October  or  in  September  should  be  put  into  winter  quarters  still 
earlier.    Though  it  cannot  be  positively  asserted,  it  is  probable  that  after  the 
frame  of  the  bird  is  grown  (though  not  filled  out)  it  is  better  to  put  it  into 
winter  quarters  than  to  postpone  the  change  until  egg  production  is  (supposed 
to  be)  about  to  begin.    The  advantages  of  range  for  a  longer  period  may  be 
more  than  offset  by  the  disadvantages  of  a  general  disturbance  of  life  at  that 
stage.    Apart  from  effects  of  changes  of  quarters,  the  season  is  very  trying  to 
birds  with  any  predisposition  to  roupy  troubles.    The  nights  are  growing  chill ; 
cold  rains  are  frequent;  the  weather  is  sometimes  raw  and  disagreeable  for 
days  at  a  time. 

(b)  Change  of  diet.    If  the  birds,  when  oh  range,  have  secured  much  food 
by  foraging,  in  the  winter  quarters  they  must  be  supplied  with  things  to  fill 
out  the  ration.    It  not  infrequently  happens  that  weeks  elapse  before  the  poultry 
keeper  is  giving  them  a  full  ration.    He  is  not  prepared,  or  has  not  time  to 
properly  attend  to  them.    Change  of  diet  and  inadequate  food,  with  other 
changes,  may  easily  have   more  serious  effects   on  laying  than   are  plainly 
discernible  at  the  time. 

(c)  Change  of  ventilation  in  the  house.    Most  of  the  coops  used  for  growing 
stock  are  well  ventilated.    Many  of  the  houses  used  for  adult  stock  are  not. 
Birds  inured  to  bad  ventilation  may  not  be  seriously  affected  by  it,  but  few 
birds  will  stand  a  sudden  change  from  well-ventilated  to   poorly  ventilated 


296  POULTRY  CULTURE 

sleeping  quarters  without  developing  roupy  symptoms,  and  sometimes  the 
most  thrifty  birds  will  contract  roup  in  a  virulent  form  under  such  conditions.1 
While  not  as  general  as  it  was  a  few  years  ago,  it  is  still  too  much  the  practice 
to  begin,  with  the  first  chill  and  frosty  nights,  to  close  poultry  houses  tight. 
Under  no  circumstances  should  a  poultry  house  be  closed,  more  than  it  has 
been  during  the  summer,  before  water  will  freeze  in  it  at  a  few  feet  from  the 
door.  This  applies  to  all  kinds  of  poultry.  After  such  degree  of  cold  is  passed, 
windows  and  doors  may  be  partially  closed  for  birds  with  large,  tender  combs, 
but  except  in  the  coldest  sections  this  is  not  necessary,  as  far  as  the  hens  are 
concerned.  The  open  house,  for  the  reasons  stated  in  Chapter  IX,  usually  gives 
the  more  uniform  temperature  conditions  and  insures  greater  regularity  of  life. 

Constitution.  If  pullets  are  physically  and  sexually  mature,  well 
nourished  at  the  outset  and  well  fed,  and  if  irregularities  are 
avoided,  they  should,  if  they  begin  to  lay  about  the  first  of  October 
and  later,  continue  to  lay  steadily,  and  the  rate  of  production  for  the 
individual  should  be  as  high  then  as  at  any  time.  To  a  very  great 
extent  the  low  averages  for  flocks  at  this  time  result  from  the  pres- 
ence of  pullets  that  are  not  laying.  After  a  few  weeks  of  laying, 
differences  in  constitutional  vitality  begin  to  become  apparent. 
Some  birds  slow  up  or  stop,  and  perhaps  show  loss  of  weight ; 
others  continue  the  same  rate  of  laying  without  noticeable  loss  of 
weight,  and  perhaps  with  some  gain  in  weight.  .Differences  due  to 
constitutional  vitality  are  most  marked  when  comparisons  can  be 
made  between  selected  lots.  Unless  birds  are  very  deficient  in 
vitality,  the  lack  of  it  need  not  seriously  affect  the  egg  yield  dur- 
ing the  first  winter.  Good  care  and  an  abundance  of  stimulating 
food  will  keep  up  egg  production,  though  it  may  shorten  the 
productive  life  of  the  bird. 

Exercise  affects  egg  production  only  through  its  effects  on  the 
general  health  and  condition  of  the  bird.  Hens  will  lay  and  lay 
well  for  many  months  at  a  stretch  with  very  little  exercise,  but 
eventually  the  lack  of  exercise  will  tell.  The  effects  are  not  in  all 
cases  the  same.  Perhaps  the  most  common  development  is  a 
gradual  softening  and  weakening  of  the  entire  system,  most  pro- 
nounced at  first  in  its  effects  on  the  digestive  system.  Under  ordi- 
nary feeding  hens  are  likely  to  lose  weight ;  under  very  heavy 

1  It  is  probable  that  in  such  cases  the  germs  of  roup  are  present  either  in  the 
houses  or  in  the  birds,  which  were  practically  immune  under  good  hygienic  con- 
ditions. That  is  a  point  not  easily  determined  in  ordinary  instances  of  this  kind. 


EGG  PRODUCTION  297 

feeding,  with  little  exercise,  they  may  become  very  fat  while  still 
laying  heavily,  —  a  fact  that  indicates  very  high  digestive  power. 
If  the  birds  remain  organically  sound,  improvement  of  conditions 
with  respect  to  exercise  is  almost  immediately  followed  by  the 
building  up  of  specimens  in  poor  flesh  and  the  reduction  of  fat  in 
others,  and  by  improvement  of  egg  production  if  that  has  fallen 
off.  If  there  is  any  organic  weakness  it  is  likely  to  be  devel- 
oped in  birds  that  are  out  of  condition,  and  may  interfere  with 
future  production. 

Cleanliness,  in  poultry  keeping,  is  a  relative  term.  It  cannot  be 
shown  on  any  broad  view  of  the  subject,  or  on  any  comparison  of  in- 
stances, that  absolute  cleanliness,  or  a  condition  approximating  it,  is 
always  an  advantage.  The  accumulations  of  dirt  in  poultry  coops 
and  houses  come  chiefly  from  the  droppings  of  the  birds,  more 
or  less  mixed  with  earth  or  sand  from  the  floor,  with  litter,  and 
sometimes  with  waste  food.  While  this  is  dry  and  odorless  it  is 
apparently  harmless.  If  wet,  it  heats  and  molds.  The  molds  which 
form  on  damp  litter  are  a  fertile  cause  of  disease,  much  more 
dangerous  to  some  fowls  than  the  pollution  of  their  food  and  water. 
The  more  thorough  the  ventilation  in  a  house,  the  better  will  be  the 
sanitary  conditions  and  the  less  need  of  frequent  cleaning.  The 
best  guides  to  the  degree  of  cleanliness  that  should  be  maintained 
are  the  condition  of  the  birds  and  the  keeper's  sense  of  smell.  A 
house  should  never  get  so  dirty  that  hens  cannot  keep  their  feet, 
their  feathers,  and  the  eggs  clean.  Any  offensive  odor  in  a  house 
suggests  need  of  a  search  for  its  cause  and  the  removal  of  the 
offensive  matter. 

Broodiness  is  most  aptly  described  as  a  negative  factor  in  egg 
production.  Its  characteristic  tendency  is  to  limit  laying  periods 
and  thereby  reduce  the  annual  output  of  a  bird. 

Duration  of  laying  periods.  Broodiness  breaks  up  the  laying 
year  into  a  number  of  short  periods,  hence  the  common  idea  that 
eggs  are  produced  in  litters  and  that,  having  once  commenced 
laying,  a  hen  (or  other  female  bird)  will  "  lay  out  her  litter."  While 
in  birds  which  have  the  broody  character  broodiness  may  tend  to 
develop  as  production  of  eggs  ceases,  in  nonbroody  birds  production 
is  influenced  wholly  by  the  other  factors  mentioned.  In  the  most 
perfect  combination  of  these  factors  laying  is  almost  continuous, 


298  POULTRY  CULTURE 

though  the  rate  of  production  may  vary.  Ordinarily  a  nonbroody 
hen,  having  commenced  to  lay  regularly,  continues  while  the  com- 
bination of  factors  (most  of  which  are  imperfect)  is  sufficient  to 
maintain  production,  then  stops,  and  after  a  period  of  recuperation, 
begins  again,  to  continue  as  long  as  the  factors  are  able  to  give 
the  results. 

Molting  and  egg  production.  In  all  kinds  of  poultry  except  fowls, 
and  in  a  large  proportion  of  hens,  no  eggs  are  laid  during  the  an- 
nual molt.  Normally  the  molt  begins  in  early  summer  and  requires 
about  four  months  for  its  completion.  Most  hens  will  lay  more  or 
less  during  the  early  stages  of  the  molt,  while  feathers  are  dropping 
fast  and  new  ones  are  growing  slowly,  but  nearly  all  stop  entirely 
when  the  new  coat  is  growing  rapidly.  As  molting  checks  laying, 
so  laying  prolonged  into  the  molting  season  tends  to  postpone  it. 
This  may  be  an  advantage  when  the  birds  are  not  to  be  used  a 
second  season,  but  the  advantage  is  not  generally  so  clear  in  regard 
to  those  that  are  to  be  kept  over.  It  is  a  question  whether,  on  the 
whole,  anything  is  gained  by  hens  laying  through  the  entire  molt. 
In  the  case  of  very  heavy  layers  there  is  no  doubt  that  in  many 
instances  the  high  totals  could  not  be  reached  if  egg  production 
were  not  almost  continuous.  In  many  cases  of  moderate  laying, 
results  indicate  that  the  total  output  might  be  greater  if  the  bird 
did  one  thing  at  a  time.  While  always  speculating  on  the  phases 
of  this  problem,  the  poultry  keeper  working  for  egg  production 
habitually  exerts  himself  to  get  eggs  in  the  present,  and  lets  the 
molt  and  the  future  laying  period  come  accordingly.  Various 
methods  of  forcing  molting  are  sometimes  recommended.  Some 
of  these,  notably  the  plan  of  starving  for  a  period  and  then  feeding 
heavily,  tend  to  hasten  the  shedding  of  the  old  coat  and  the  start- 
ing of  the  new,  but  there  is  little  evidence  to  show  that  anything 
is  gained  in  egg  production.  Such  interference  with  the  course  of 
nature  would  be  expected  to  unfavorably  affect  the  sensitive  organs 
of  reproduction.  The  usual  experience  of  those  who  try  the  experi- 
ment is  that  egg  production  is  stopped,  but  begins  again  no  sooner 
than  in  birds  which  perhaps  lay  several  months  longer  and  pass 
through  the  first  stages  of  the  molt  more  slowly. 

Variability  of  egg  yields.  Egg  yields  are  variable  both  in  indi- 
vidtial  birds  and  in  flocks.  The  yields  of  individuals  range  from  o 


EGG  PRODUCTION 


299 


to  over  250  by  authentic  records.  Questionable  records  give  still 
higher  yields.  The  annual  product  of  an  average  good  layer  is 
about  1 2  or  13  dozen  eggs  a  year.  The  usual  average  for  flocks  of 
several  hundred  and  upward  ranges  from  9  to  12  dozen  per  hen, 
10  dozen  being  considered  a  good  average  yield  for  flocks  of  several 
hundred.  High  flock  averages  indicate  general  uniformity  in  laying. 
Low  averages  under  good  conditions  indicate  very  unequal  laying, 
and  either  weak  stock,  bad  conditions,  or  poor  selection  of  stock. 
Selection  of  stock  for  laying.  Selection  of  layers  is  a  practically 
continuous  process,  beginning  with  the  weeding  out  of  markedly 
inferior  birds  as  soon  as  they  are  large  enough  for  table  use,  and 
continued  by  the  regular  disposal  thereafter  of  all  birds  that  fail  to 
develop,  or  that,  after  having  developed  and  perhaps  produced  for  a 
period,  go  so  much  out  of  condition  that  they  seem  unlikely  to  be- 
come profitable  producers  again.  In  selecting  laying  stock  on  this 
principle  the  standard  used  is  the  well-developed,  vigorous  individual 
bird.  With  occasional  exceptions,  due  apparently  to  ovarian  trouble, 
the  best-developed  and  best-looking l  pullets  in  a  flock  prove  to  be 
the  best  layers.  The  undeveloped,  slow  developing,  and  least  attrac- 
tive birds  are  usually  distinctly  inferior  to  the  others,  especially  in 
comparisons  of  yields  for  long  periods.  The  relative  proportions 
of  good,  medium,  and  poor  birds  selected  in  this  way  varies  greatly. 
In  well-bred,  well-grown  stock  the  proportion  of  pullets  which 
should  be  discarded  at  or  before  maturity  ought  not  to  exceed 
one  in  eight  or  ten,  and  of  the  remainder  the  extra  choice  and 
ordinary  birds  should  be  about  equally  divided.  After  the  culling 
out  of  the  inferior  I  o  per  cent  or  1 2  per  cent,  the  general  average 
production  of  such  a  flock  of  pullets,  under  good  conditions  and 
management,  should  be  good,  with  the  production  of  the  better  half 
of  the  flock  averaging  one  or  two  dozen  eggs  per  hen  more  than 
that  of  the  poorer  half.  The  better  half  of  the  flock  should  also 
show  the  lower  mortality  and  the  smaller  percentage  of  birds  going 
out  of  condition.  If  the  stock  is  indifferently  well  bred  and  has  not 
been  well  managed,  the  proportion  that  are  likely  to  prove  profitable 

1  Not  necessarily  the  best  looking  to  a  fancier  who  has  been  educated  to 
judge  by  artificial  standards,  but  the  birds  in  the  flock  which  the  ordinary  per- 
son with  an  appreciation  of  beauty  due  to  physical  development  and 'condition 
would  consider  most  attractive. 


300 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


layers  may  be  very  small.  Special  points  in  selecting  layers  will  be 
treated  in  connection  with  the  selection  of  breeding  stock  to  pro- 
duce layers.  Systems  for  selecting  layers,  based  usually  on  phys- 
ical measurements,  are  unreliable.  The  trap  nest  and  individual 
record  are  necessary  to  select  the  individual  producers  with  cer- 
tainty, but  such  methods  are  too  expensive  to  be  profitably  used 
with  laying  stock.  Judicious  selection  on  general  appearance  will 
eliminate  most  of  the  poor  producers.  It  is  usually  cheaper  to 
feed  any  that  this  method  overlooks  than  to  go  to  the  expense  of 
identifying  them. 

Effect  of  age  on  production.  Age  and  egg  production  are  not 
directly  correlated,  though  they  often  seem  to  be.  General  com- 
parisons of  records  of  pullets  with  older  hens,  and  of  records  of  the 
same  flock  of  birds  through  several  years,  indicate  production  at  its 
highest  during  the  first  year,  and  so  rapidly  diminishing  that  only  a 
small  proportion  of  hens  continue  profitable  layers  after  the  second 
year  (for  the  heavier  breeds)  or  third  year  (for  the  lighter  breeds). 
Instances  of  flocks,  as  well  as  individuals,  furnishing  exceptions  to 
the  general  condition  are,  however,  numerous  enough  to  show  that 
production  depends  primarily  upon  constitution  and  condition,  and 
upon  age  only  as  age  affects  condition  through  the  cumulative 
effects  of  unfavorable  influences  and  the  natural  diminution  of 
vitality.  As  a  rule,  only  about  half  the  pullets  selected  for  layers 
at  maturity  will  pass  as  rigid  a  test  of  condition  a  year  later,  and 
not  more  than  one  fourth  of  a  third  of  those  reserved  for  a  second 
winter  will  pass  a  third  examination.  At  three  years  of  age,  and 
even  older,  hens  in  good  condition  may  be  more  valuable  for  egg 
production  than  the  poorer  pullets. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 

Fattening  a  finishing  process.  Poultry  in  the  best  condition  for 
laying  or  breeding  is  not  in  the  best  condition  for  market  and  con- 
sumption. For  poultry  of  any  quality -that  is  at  all  fit  for  food  there 
is  a  market.  Inferior  poultry  will  usually  sell  at  its  full  value  as 
compared  with  other  meats, —  often  at  more  than  its  relative  value  ; 
but  such  poultry  commands  no  premium,  and  yields  little  profit  to 
the  producer.  If  the  amount  is  small  and  it  has  cost  him  little,  he 
may  sell  it  at  small  profit,  or  even  at  some  loss,  without  appreciat- 
ing how  much  less  he  is  realizing  on  it  than  he  would  if  the  qual- 
ity were  better.  When  larger  quantities  are  handled,  and  cost  and 
selling  prices  are  compared,  the  advantage  of  growing  and  finish- 
ing poultry  to  suit  the  requirements  of  the  best  trade  cannot  escape 
the  poultry  keeper's  attention. 

Fattening  improves  both  appearance  and  quality.  A  thin  bird 
is  not  at  all  attractive  when  dressed  ;  the  flesh  appears  shrunken 
and  hard,  the  bones  prominent,  the  skin  thin  and  more  or  less 
shriveled.  When  cooked,  the  meat  of  such  a  bird  is  dry  and  tough 
unless  the  bird  is  quite  young.  A  bird  that  is  muscularly  well  de- 
veloped (meaty  but  not  fat)  is  much  more  attractive  in  appearance 
and  much  better  eating.  A  fat  bird  is  still  better  in  appearance  and 
better  eating.  To  this  point  the  majority  of  consumers'  tastes 
agree;  beyond  it,  opinions  differ.  Only  a  small  proportion  of  con- 
sumers care  for  very  fat  poultry,  and  in  America  there  is  practically 
no  demand  for  such  excessively  fat  poultry  as  is  produced  in  some 
parts  of  Europe. 

Common  practice  as  to  fattening.  By  far  the  greater  part  of  the 
poultry  produced  in  America  is  turned  off  by  the  producer  in  an 
unfinished  state.  The  young  birds  grown  on  farms  are  usually  dis- 
posed of  when  they  have  reached  marketable  size,  or  at  the  end 
of  the  season,  in  whatever  condition  they  happen  to  be.  Turkeys 
and  geese  sold  for  the  holiday  season  are  generally  given  better 

301 


302 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


preparation  than  at  other  times,  or  than  other  farm  poultry  get,  but 
even  of  these,  enormous  quantities  of  unfinished  birds  are  put  on 
the  market.  Of  birds,  particularly  chickens,  grown  under  intensive 
conditions,  the  good  specimens  are  usually  much  better  finished 
than  those  from  the  farms ;  the  poorer  ones  are  much  inferior,  — 
not  only  thin  but  unthrifty  or  unhealthy  looking.  As  a  rule,  only 
those  poultry  keepers  producing  especially  for  the  table  (and  by  no 
means  all  of  these)  make  any  well-directed  efforts  to  put  poultry  on 
the  market  in  first-class  shape.  Among  all  classes  of  poultry  keep- 
ers, however,  conditions  in  this  respect  are  gradually  improving. 

What  has  been  said  so  far  applies  to  young  poultry.  Much  of 
the  old  poultry  marketed  is  overfat,  perhaps  best  described  as  acci- 
dentally and  improperly  fattened.  A  great  deal  of  it  is  poultry  that 
should  have  been  marketed  weeks,  months,  or  even  years  before, 
and  would  have  been  if  the  owners  had  systematically  disposed  of 
their  birds  as  they  became  unprofitable.  Such  poultry,  though  fat, 
is  not  finished,  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  term.  The  fat  on  it  is 
usually  not  well  distributed,  detracts  from  rather  than  adds  to  the 
appearance,  and  is  distinctly  inferior  in  flavor  to  the  fat  on  a  freshly 
finished  bird. 

Simple  methods  of  fattening.  Ordinary  fattening  is  accom- 
plished by  modifications  of  ordinary  feeding  conditions  and  meth- 
ods. As  already  stated,  the  mere  change  of  the  conditions  of 
feeding  by  stopping  exercise  may  result  in  a  quite  rapid  accumula- 
tion of  fat,  though  no  change  is  made  in  the  ration.  Increase  of 
the  proportion  of  fattening  foods  in  the  ration,  the  birds  still  taking 
exercise,  also  tends  to  make  fat.  Increase  of  fattening  foods  with 
restriction  on  exercise  usually  causes  very  rapid  fattening,  the  rate 
and  amount  of  fattening  being  governed  very  largely  by  the  close- 
ness of  confinement  and  the  proportion  of  fat-producing  elements  in 
the  food,  and  limited  by  the  capacity  of  the  bird  to  continue  to  digest 
food  and  to  accumulate  fat  under  conditions  tending  to  exhaust 
vital  powers.  Finishing  in  this  way  is  a  simple  process  and  (if  the 
birds  have  been  properly  grown  up  to  the  finishing  stage)  so  effec- 
tive that  there  is  no  excuse  for  putting  thrifty  young  poultry  of  any 
kind  on  the  market  in  poor  condition.  All  that  is  necessary  is  that 
birds  to  be  marketed  should  be  separated  from  the  others  a  few 
weeks  before  (instead  of  at)  the  time  when  they  are  to  be  disposed 


FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 


303 


of,  and  that  in  the  interval  they  should  be  kept  more  closely  con- 
fined and  fed  almost  entirely  on  corn  in  the  form  most  appropriate 
to  the  circumstances  and  to  the  kind  of  poultry  to  be  fattened. 
The  objection  to  corn  as  a  fattening  food  in  countries  where  white 
fat  and  skin  are  desired  does  not  apply  in  this  country,  where  yel- 
low1 fat  and  skin  are  preferred.  On  the  South  Shore  soft-roaster 
plants,  where  most  of  the  chickens  grown  are  destined  for  market, 
the  practice  is  (after  weaning)  to  keep  a  fattening  ration  before  them 
at  all  times,  yet  at  the  same  time  to  allow  them  all  the  range  that 
they  want.  The  ranges  used  are  heavily  stocked,  but  the  birds  used, 
being  naturally  inclined  to  put  on  fat,  and  being  full  fed,  do  not 
go  far  in  search  of  food.  With  every  opportunity  to  exercise,  they 
take  only  enough  to  keep  them  in  condition,  carry  at  any  age 
more  fat  than  most  well-conditioned  chickens,  and,  as  they  com- 
plete their  growth,  become  as  fat,  without  other  special  treatment, 
as  any  American  trade  requires. 

Where  the  principal  thing  is  to  grow  good  stock  birds,  and  only 
a  part  of  the  poultry  is  to  be  finished  at  one  time,  the  birds  to  be 
finished  should  be  penned  up  for  from  ten  days  to  four  or  five 
weeks,  according  to  their  condition  and  the  demand  to  be  met. 

Broilers  to  be  killed  at  from  two  to  two  and  one  half  pounds 
should  be  taken  at  about  one  pound  weight  (if  the  chickens  have 
been  on  range)  and  put  into  small  yards  or  indoor  pens.  They 
should  not  be  too  closely  crowded,  —  one  bird  to  about  every  5  feet 
of  yard  room  or  from  2\  to  3  feet  of  inside  room.  The  feed  at 
first  should  be  the  growing  ration  they  have  had,  all  they  will  eat. 
Gradually  the  proportions  of  corn  and  meat  elements  should  be 
increased,  until,  in  the  last  week  before  they  are  to  be  killed,  the 
most  fattening  rations  mentioned  may  be  given. 

Fryers  may  be  handled  in  the  same  way,  being  taken  from  the 
range  at  from  one  to  one  and  one  half  pounds  below  the  weight  at 

1  Europeans  accustomed  to  (and  preferring)  white  skin  and  fat  in  their  poultry 
consider  yellow  fat  strong  and  not  so  fine  in  flavor.  Some  American  writers, 
assuming  that  the  European  taste  is  more  highly  cultivated,  echo  this  opinion. 
American  consumers  generally  prefer  the  yellow  fowls.  Custom  and  prejudice  give 
rise  to  the  preference.  Imagination  and  occasional  instances  that  fit  the  theory 
confirm  both  ideas.  It  is  no  more  possible  for  a  blindfold  person  to  know  whether 
the  chicken  that  he  is  eating  has  yellow  or  white  skin  than  whether  the  eggs  in  his 
pudding  had  white  or  brown  shells. 


304 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


which  they  are  to  be  killed,  and  being  allowed  one  week  for  each 
half  pound  of  weight  to  be  added.  Many  birds  can  be  carried  much 
longer  in  this  way,  always  in  marketable  condition  and  steadily 
gaining  in  growth  ;  but,  as  a  proportion  will  usually  begin  to  go 
off  in  condition  after  three  or  four  weeks,  it  is  better  not  to  under- 
take to  carry  them  in  this  way  too  long.  In  such  matters  as  this 
the  poultry  keeper  must  be  governed  by  conditions  as  they  arise. 

Roasters  are  usually  well  grown  before  being  finished  or  fattened. 
Chickens  approaching  maturity  in  good  condition  may  be  fattened, 
as  much  as  required,  in  two  or  three  weeks'  yard  feeding  of  ordi- 
nary rations  containing  half  corn  ;  by  confining  more  closely  and 
feeding  on  corn  exclusively,  they  may  be  brought  to  the  required 
degree  of  finish  in  a  week  or  ten  days.  Fattening  is  hastened  by 
darkening  the  quarters  in  which  the  birds  are  kept.  For  a  week  or 
ten  days,  birds  of  this  age  being  fattened  in  this  way  may  be  kept 
in  rooms  from  which  the  light  is  excluded  except  for  two  or  three 
periods  of  from  fifteen  to  twenty  minutes  each  daily,  when  it  is 
admitted,  that  they  may  see  to  eat.  Under  such  conditions  they 
put  on  fat  very  rapidly. 

Fowls  of  both  sexes  past  profitable  use  as  producers  should  be 
sold  at  once  if  fat.  If  in  good  condition,  not  fat,  they  may  be  fin- 
ished by  close  confinement  and  heavy  feeding  for  a  short  period, 
as  just  described  for  roasters.  If  in  poor  flesh  and  requiring  longer 
feeding,  it  is  better  to  treat  them  for  several  weeks  as  described  for 
broilers,  and  then  to  finish  as  above  in  close  confinement. 

Ducks  to  be  sold  as  green  dticks  are  handled  in  general  by  the 
same  methods  as  broilers,  the  fattening  periods  for  these  two  kinds 
of  poultry  corresponding  closely.  Ducklings  (see  rations,  p.  235) 
will  stand  without  injury  much  heavier  feeding  than  any  other 
young  poultry.  As  they  grow  rapidly,  so  they  fatten  easily.  Indeed, 
well-fed  ducklings  are  fat  at  any  time,  and  with  a  liberal  fattening 
ration  become  very  fat  as  the  frame  stops  growing. 

Older  ducks  (both  the  young  birds  held  until  maturity  for  table 
use  and  those  no  longer  required  for  production)  are  easily  fattened 
in  confinement  by  heavy  feeding  —  not  much  different  from  the 
usual  ration  at  first  and  gradually  changed  until,  for  about  a  week 
before  killing,  they  are  fed  on  the  same  ration  as  that  used  for 
finishing  ducklings.  The  length  of  the  finishing  period  must  be 


FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 


305 


determined  by  the  condition  of  the  birds  at  the  start  and  by  the  rate 
of  increase  of  fat. 

Geese  to  be  sold  as  green  geese  are  handled  in  much  the  same 
way  as  green  ducks,  but  as  goslings  require  relatively  more  bulky 
green  food  while  growing,  the  change  to  the  full  fattening  ration 
should  be  made  more  gradually,  and  such  birds  as  show  signs  of 
breaking  down  (weakness  of  legs)  should  be  disposed  of  at  once. 

Older  geese  are  easily  fattened,  either  by  liberal  feeding  of  whole 
or  cracked  corn  with  grass  pasture  (good,  but  not  too  extended),  or 
by  feeding  a  standard  mash  once  a  day  and  corn  once  a  day.  There 
is  less  need  of  very  heavy  feeding  with  the  older  geese  than  with 
the  green  geese.  For  the  latter  it  is  desirable  to  have  the  birds 
finished  as  soon  as  possible  after  the  frame  is  grown,  and  before 
the  last  adolescent  molt.  The  finishing  period  is  therefore  short, 
and  rations  of  the  highest  efficiency  must  be  used,  even  at  extra 
risks.  For  the  older  birds  more  time  can  be  taken.  As  they  will 
keep  in  good  condition  on  pasture,  the  keeper  who  has  pasture  can 
extend  the  finishing  period  as  much  as  he  sees  fit,  and  make  the 
fattening  a  slow  process. 

Turkeys,  being  of  a  roving  disposition  (the  young  especially  being 
likely  to  fret  in  confinement),  are  less  easily  finished  for  market 
than  geese.  As  most  flocks  of  turkeys  are  handled  on  farms,  the 
fattening  depends  much  on  conditions  not  under  the  keeper's  con- 
trol. As  the  supply  of  food  to  be  secured  by  foraging  diminishes 
in  the  fall,  they  are  tempted  to  keep  nearer  home  by  more  liberal 
feeding  there.  If  the  weather  is  seasonable  —  that  is,  rather  cool 
—  their  appetites  are  sharpened,  and  if  well  fed,  they  increase 
rapidly  in  size  and  at  the  same  time  put  on  fat.  Their  condition 
at  the  time  for  killing  for  the  Thanksgiving  trade  depends  much 
upon  the  weather  during  the  two  months,  and  especially  the  few 
weeks,  preceding.  Unseasonably  warm  weather  is  unfavorable  to 
finishing.  Whole  corn  fed  freely  two  or  three  times  a  day  is  the 
usual  fattening  ration,  old  and  young  being  fed  together.  Mash, 
or  dough,  is  sometimes  given  once  a  day  to  hasten  the  process. 

Causes  of  failures  in  finishing  by  ordinary  methods.  It  is  usual 
to  attribute  poor  results  to  the  inefficiency  of  the  ration.  They  are 
more  likely  to  be  due  (i)  to  the  condition  of  the  birds,  (2)  to  condi- 
tions unsatisfactory  for  the  process,  or  (3)  to  constitutional  tendency. 


306  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Birds  of  low  vitality  and  weak  digestion  are  difficult  to  fatten,  as 
they  are  to  develop  in  any  way.  Fattening  such  birds  is,  if  any- 
thing, more  difficult  than  growing  them.  The  explanation  of  this 
may  be  that  in  the  natural  course  fat  is  not  produced  unless  every 
other  existing  need  is  supplied.  If  not  demonstrable,  it  is  still  a 
reasonable  theory  that  on  a  ration  supplying  all  the  material  for 
growth  that  it  can  use  (forcing  development  at  the  highest  rate  of 
which  the  organization  is  capable),  a  bird  of  high  functional  power 
could  store  up  some  fat  without  expense  to  growth.  Many  rapidly 
growing  birds  do  this  even  while  on  range  and  taking  all  the  exer- 
cise that  they  need.  On  the  other  hand,  undersized  birds  are  usually 
poor  in  flesh  as  well  as  small  until  growth  is  completed,  and  are 
not  profitable  feeders  at  any  age  or  for  any  purpose. 

Not  only  should  birds  undergoing  the  finishing  process  be  re- 
stricted either  by  confinement  or  by  circumstances,  but  particular 
care  should  be  given  to  protecting  them  from  alarms,  annoyances, 
and  disturbances  of  all  kinds.  These  may  affect  a  fattening  bird 
more  seriously  than  one  growing  under  more  normal  conditions,  or 
than  a  laying  hen,  because  the  general  effect  of  the  conditions  of 
the  finishing  process  is  physically  demoralizing  to  the  bird,  which 
becomes  more  and  more  sensitive  to  disturbing  influences,  as  the 
process  continues.  Not  infrequently  poultry  being  fattened  are  con- 
fined where  they  are  constantly  exposed  to  annoyances.  Under  such 
conditions  good  results  are  impossible,  except,  perhaps,  with  very 
phlegmatic  birds.  Constitutional  tendency  has  much  to  do  with  fat- 
tening. In  general,  the  medium-weight  and  heavy  breeds  fatten 
more  readily  than  the  smaller  and  more  active  ones,  but  even  in 
the  breeds  with  a  marked  tendency  to  put  on  fat  many  individual 
specimens  are  difficult  to  fatten,  and  sometimes  whole  stocks  with 
the  type  and  characteristics  of  such  birds  will  prove  very  unsatis- 
factory when  subjected  to  a  finishing  process. 

Special  fattening  plants  using  ordinary  methods.  Goose-fatten- 
ing farms,  developed  by  poultry  buyers  for  finishing  geese  raised 
principally  on  pasture,  are  the  only  special  fattening  establishments 
using  ordinary  methods  of  finishing.  Some  of  these  farms  have 
fattened  from  ten  thousand  to  fifteen  thousand  geese  a  season.  The 
profits  are  sometimes  very  large,  but  the  risk  of  disease  in  buying 
birds  from  many  sources,  and  in  using  the  same  land  year  after 


FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 


307 


year,  is  so  great  that  this  line  has  proved  a  most  precarious  one. 
Some  of  the  most  successful  men  in  it,  knowing  the  risks  to  which 
they  were  continually  exposed,  have  systematically  urged  the  growers 
from  whom  they  were  buying  to  fatten  their  own  geese,  and  growers 
are  more  and  more  following  this  advice,  especially  when  located 
near  good  markets. 

Fowls,  ducks,  and  (more  rarely)  turkeys  are  sometimes  fed  in 
considerable  numbers  by  buyers  in  touch  with  large  live-poultry 
markets,  who  take  advantage  of  opportunities  to  buy  cheap  and 
increase  the  weight  of  the  birds  while  holding  them  for  a  rise. 
Operations  of  this  kind  are  rather  irregular,  and,  like  most  specu- 
lative transactions,  are  often  unprofitable. 

Special  finishing  methods.  There  are  two  special  fattening  proc- 
esses, crate  feeding  and  cramming.  Occasion  for  special  methods 
comes  in  part  from  the  neglect  or  failure  of  ordinary  methods  and 
in  part  from  the  demand  for  poultry  fatted  more  than  is  possible 
by  ordinary  methods.  Both  processes  date  from  early  times  and 
have  long  been  used  in  Europe.  Several  efforts  to  introduce  them 
into  America  have  met  with  very  limited  and  temporary  success. 
Whatever  may  be  the  case  in  countries  where  they  have  been  long 
established,  in  America  the  exploitation  of  such  methods  turns 
the  attention  of  the  producer  to  the  consideration  of  the  advan- 
tage of  ordinary  methods  of  fattening,  and  when  these  are  properly 
used,  there  is  less  material  for  and  less  need  of  special  fattening. 
Again,  while  these  special  methods  may  sometimes  give  results 
not  to  be  obtained  by  ordinary  methods,  they  do  not  do  so  regularly. 
The  truest  appreciation  of  their  utility  is  reached  by  treating  them, 
not  as  of  proved  intrinsic  worth  and  as  necessary  parts  of  any 
good  general  system  of  poultry  culture,  but  as  useful  (like  all  other 
methods)  in  proportion  to  their  adaptation  to  conditions  existing 
at  any  time  and  place. 

Crate  feeding.  The  process  of  crate  feeding  carries  the  detail  of 
finishing  by  restriction  of  exercise  and  by  forced  feeding  farther 
than  is  practicable  by  ordinary  methods,  with  the  birds  penned  on 
a  floor.  The  food  used  is  finely  ground  grains  mixed  to  about  the 
consistency  of  batter  and  fed  in  troughs.  The  use  of  such  food 
makes  it  necessary  to  keep  the  birds  in  small  groups,  with  the 
food  outside  of  their  compartment,  and  also  to  keep  them  on  such 


308  POULTRY  CULTURE 

a  floor  or  bottom  that  their  feet  and  feathers  will  be  as  little 
soiled  as  possible  by  the  soft  droppings  which  the  use  of  such 
food  makes,  and  that  the  coops  may  require  as  little  attention 
as  possible.  To  meet  these  requirements  coops  with  floors  of 
slats  about  2  inches  wide  and  2  inches  apart  are  used. 

Unlike  the  ordinary  methods  of  finishing,  crate  feeding  cannot 
properly  be  considered  a  modification  of  methods  used  prior  to 
the  finishing  period.  It  is  quite  different,  both  theoretically  and 
in  fact.  The  practice  apparently  had  its  origin  not  with  growers  of 
poultry  but  with  poulterers,  —  middlemen,  —  who  saw  an  oppor- 
tunity to  make  a  profit  by  giving  to  poultry  a  better  finish  than 
the  growers  did.  Thus,  as  a  rule,  the  crate-fed  birds  are  abruptly 
changed  from  one  set  of  conditions  to  quite  different  conditions. 
Some  birds  are  unfavorably  affected  by  such  changes,  others  are 
not  and  may  even  be  stimulated  by  a  change.  The  birds  that  are 
not  affected  by  the  change  and  can  stand  the  forced  feeding  long 
enough  may  be  doubled  in  value  in  a  few  weeks  at  a  very  low  cost 
for  food  and  labor.  A  bird  that  cannot  stand  the  feeding  may  lose 
value.  Success  in  crate  feeding  thus  depends  first  on  the  feeder's 
accuracy  in  judging  which  birds  will  stand  the  process.  This  a 
skillful  feeder  can  determine  within  the  first  two  or  three  days  of 
crate  feeding.  The  birds  not  desirable  for  his  purpose  can  then  be 
disposed  of  with  slight  loss,  if  not  with  some  profit,  and  his  profit 
on  the  whole  transaction  be  considerable.  With  poor  judgment  in 
selecting  birds  for  feeding,  results  may  be  more  unsatisfactory  than 
when  ordinary  methods  of  fattening  are  used.  On  this  continent 
the  practice  of  crate-feeding  has  thus  far  been  confined  to  packing 
establishments  buying  in  sections  where  poultry  is  cheap  and  not 
well  finished,  and  to  a  few  poultrymen  here  and  there  whose 
opportunities  and  aptitude  for  this  line  of  work  enable  them  to 
take  advantage  of  the  failure  of  others  to  finish  their  product,  and 
of  proximity  to  good  markets.  The  grower  estimating  the  value 
to  him  of  crate  feeding  must  compare  results  not  with  prices  for 
such  unfinished  birds  as  are  the  raw  material  of  the  crate  feeder, 
but  with  results  obtained  by  the  simpler  method  of  pen  fattening. 

Cramming.  The  process  of  cramming  carries  forced  feeding 
to  its  limit,  the  birds  being  closely  confined  and  compelled  to 
swallow  food  that  they  do  not  want.  The  process  is  a  very  ancient 


FINISHING  POULTRY  FOR  THE  TABLE 


309 


one,  and  seems  at  first  to  have  consisted  in  forcing  the  birds  to 
swallow  solid  food  after  their  natural  appetite  led  them  to  dis- 
continue eating.  This  sort  of  hand  cramming  is  still  practiced  to 
some  extent  in  Europe.  In  machine  cramming  liquid  food  is  forced 
into  the  crop  of  the  bird.  This  method  is  sometimes  used  exclu- 
sively and  sometimes  following  a  period  of  crate  feeding,  forcing 
the  process  beyond  what  is  possible  when  the  bird  is  free  to  take 
much  or  little  food  as  it  desires.  A  more  .uniform  product  is 
secured  by  cramming,  though  the  best  crate-fed  stock  is  said  to 
be  fully  as  well  finished  as  that  which  has  been  crammed. 

As  would  be  expected  from  the  relations  of  the  two  processes, 
cramming  is  less  used  everywhere  than  crate  feeding.  On  this 
continent  the  amount  of  machine  feeding  done  is  insignificant. 
The  advantages  of  special  finishing  methods  are  generally  over- 
stated by  those  advocating  them.  In  a  large  proportion  of  the 
cases  in  which  remarkable  gains  in  weight  are  made  when  birds 
are  crate  or  machine  fed,  much  of  this  gain  is  growth  which  would 
be  made  under  any  good  system  of  feeding.  The  best  showing  for 
special  fattening  methods  is  almost  invariably  made  with  chickens 
at  the  stage  of  most  rapid  growth  and  with  good  chickens.  Special 
finishing  methods  are  not,  as  is  popularly  supposed,  methods  for 
making  good  poultry  out  of  really  poor  poultry.  They  are  used, 
supplementing  the  work  of  the  grower,  to  shorten  the  time 
required  to  finish  the  birds  and  to  put  on  an  extra  finish.  It  is 
possible  by  their  use  to  put  much  more  fat  onto  birds  than  by 
the  ordinary  methods  of  fattening,  but  here  there  is  no  object  in 
doing  this.  So  far  the  most  conspicuous  result  of  the  exploitation 
of  these  methods  is  to  increase  the  use  of  the  ordinary  method 
of  finishing  poultry  for  market. 

Caponizing.  In  America  caponizing  is  extensively  practiced  only 
in  a  few  districts  where  growing  large  roasting  chickens  is  a  spe- 
cialty. A  capon  is  a  castrated  cockerel.  The  effect  of  the  operation 
is  not  (as  is  popularly  supposed)  to  greatly  increase  growth.  On  the 
contrary,  for  the  period  during  which  they  are  usually  kept  before 
marketing,  a  capon  grows  no  larger  than  it  would  if  it  had  not  been 
operated  upon.  The  object  is  to  keep  the  young  males  quiet,  to 
keep  them  soft-meated  as  long  as  possible,  and  to  make  them  easier 
to  fatten.  The  practice  is  most  common  among  growers  of  winter 


3io 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


chickens  to  be  held  for  the  early  summer  trade  and  marketed  at 
from  seven  to  nine  months  of  age.  Most  of  these  are  sold  not  as 
capons  but  as  roasting  chickens,  both  capons  and  pullets  being  so 
designated.  Except  for  the  operation  these  capons  are  handled 
in  every  way  like  the  pullets  grown  with  them. 

Cockerels  of  Asiatic  breeds  or  of  the  large  general-purpose  type 
are  most  suitable  for  capons.  The  operation  is  usually  performed 
when  the  chicks  are  about  six  or  eight  weeks  old.  It  must  be  done 
between  the  time  when  the  testicles  become  easily  visible  through 
the  incision  made  in  the  side  and  the  time  when  they  begin  to  be 
functionally  active.  After  that  the  loss  of  blood  and  the  shock  to 
the  bird  make  it  inadvisable. 

The  operation.  The  testicles  of  birds,  being  located  internally 
and  attached  to  the  backbone  a  little  below  the  middle  of  the  back, 
can  be  removed  only  through  incisions  in  the  sides.  Instruments 
for  caponizing  are  made  by  manufacturers  of  surgical  instruments, 
and  sold  by  them  direct  and  also  through  poultry-supply  dealers. 
Directions  for  operating  are  furnished  with  instruments.  The 
operation  is  not  particularly  difficult  for  one  who"  has  a  good  eye 
and  a  steady  hand.  While  it  may  be  learned  by  following  instruc- 
tions, few  become  proficient  in  it  without  personal  instruction  and 
considerable  practice.  An  expert  operator  will  caponize  from  forty 
to  sixty  birds  in  an  hour.  Chicks  of  suitable  size  do  not  seem  to 
suffer  from  the  operation.  The  wounds  heal  quickly  and  often 
leave  no  scar  visible  when  the  birds  are  dressed. 

Slips  are  capons  which,  as  they  grow,  develop  to  some  extent  the 
sexual  characters  of  which  it  is  the  object  of  the  operation  to 
deprive  them.  This  is  due,  presumably,  to  defective  operation,  but 
some  good  operators  declare  that  with  the  greatest  care  they  still 
have  many  slips.  Slips  are  not  sexually  potent,  but  as  they  become 
hard-meated  and  "  staggy,"  they  are  marketed  as  soon  as  their 
character  becomes  apparent. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  FOR  MARKET 

Dressed  poultry.  The  number  of  steps  in  the  preparation  of 
dressed  poultry  varies  according  to  the  kind  of  poultry,  the  choice 
of  methods,  and  the  disposition  to  be  made  of  it.  The  full  list  is 
(i)  fasting,  (2)  killing,  (3)  scalding,  (4)  picking,  (5)  cooling, 
(6)  shaping,  (7)  grading,  (8)  packing. 

Fasting.  Before  being  killed,  poultry  should  be  fasted  (starved 
by  withholding  food  and  water)  for  from  twenty-four  to  thirty-six 
hours,  that  when  they  are  killed,  the  crop,  gizzard,  and  entrails 
may  be  quite  empty.  This  improves  the  appearance  of  the  car- 
cass. A  dressed  bird  with  crop  bulging  at  one  side  of  the  breast 
is  not  at  all  attractive  looking.  Fasting  also  improves  the  keep- 
ing qualities  of  the  carcass  by  removing  from  it  offal  already  in  a 
state  of  partial  decomposition.  Poultry  to  be  used  at  home  need 
not  be  starved,  but  unless  it  is  to  be  cooked  immediately  after  kill- 
ing, it  is  better  to  keep  the  birds  fasting  for  at  least  a  day  before- 
hand. Packers  of  poultry,  as  well  as  producers  who  ship  their  own 
product,  sometimes  feed  and  water  shortly  before  killing,  to  increase 
the  weight.  Apart  from  the  dishonesty  of  this,  it  does  not  always 
pay  in  the  immediate  returns,  and  always  finally  works  to  the  dis- 
advantage of  those  practicing  it.  In  some  places,  offering  poultry 
for  sale  with  food  in  the  crop  is  prohibited  by  law.  Poultry  dressed 
in  this  condition  will  shrink  much  more  in  weight  during  transpor- 
tation than  poultry  that  has  been  properly  starved  before  killing, 
and  the  shipper  who  follows  this  practice  is  constantly  in  difficulty 
with  his  customers  over  short  weights.  The  necessary  shrinkage 
in  weight  from  fasting  is  very  slight,  and  is  more  than  compen- 
sated for  by  better  appearance,  better  condition,  and  (usually)  by 
the  better  price  received. 

Killing.  When  dressed  poultry  is  to  be  sold  in  the  open  markets 
the  method  of  killing  is  determined  by  the  style  of  dressing 

311 


312  POULTRY  CULTURE 

that  the  market  demands.  When  it  is  to  be  used  by  the  producer 
or  sold  direct  to  consumers,  the  method  easiest  for  the  poultryman 
may  be  used,  provided  it  is  not  objectionable  to  consumers.  The 
common  methods  of  killing  are  wringing  the  neck,  dislocating  the 
neck,  cutting  offfae  head,  and  sticking  (with  a  knife). 

Wringing  the  neck.  For  birds  not  too  large  or  too  tough,  and  for  one  who 
has  the  strength  and  nerve  to  do  it,  wringing  the  neck  is  the  easiest  way  of 
killing.  The  head  of  the  bird  is  grasped  firmly  in  one  hand,  and  the  neck  is 
wrung  and  the  head  completely  severed  from  the  body  in  an  instant  by  whirl- 
ing the  bird  by  the  head,  the  hand  of  the  person  rapidly  describing  a  few  short 
circles.  This  is  a  common  method  of  killing  fowls  and  chickens  for  immediate 

consumption.  When  done  with  skill 
and  on  suitable  birds,  it  is  as  humane  as 
any  method.  When  unskillfully  done, 
or  tried  on  birds  with  strong  frames 
and  tough  skin,  the  usual  result  is 
strangulation  without  proper  bleeding. 
Dislocating  the  neck.  Dislocating 
the  neck  is  a  method  popular  in  Canada 
but  not  used  in  the  United  States.  The 
legs  and  primary  wing  feathers  are  held 
in  the  left  hand  (as  in  cutting  off  the  head), 
this  hand  being  held  near  the  waist. 
The  head  of  the  bird  is  grasped  be- 
tween the  thumb  and  forefinger  of  the 
FIG.  319.  Killing  fowl  by  dislocating  right  ^^  ^  bent  back  at  aright  angle 

to  the  neck,  while  at  the  same  time,  by 

a  strong  but  short  pull,  the  neck  is  broken  close  to  the  skull  and  the  wind- 
pipe and  arteries  severed  so  that  the  bird  will  bleed  freely.  The  skin  is  not 
broken,  and  the  blood  collects  in  the  neck  close  to  the  head  and  clots  there. 

Cutting  off  the  head.  Cutting  off  the  head  is  the  method  of  killing  most 
practiced  with  poultry  that  is  not  to  be  held  long  after  killing,  or  not  sent  to 
markets  which  want  birds  with  heads  on.  The  bird  is  held  in  the  left  hand 
by  the  legs  and  the  primary  wing  feathers,  the  wings  being  drawn  back  until 
these  feathers  can  be  grasped  with  the  legs  in  the  hand.  The  head  is  then 
laid  on  a  block  of  wood  and  severed  as  close  as  possible  to  the  juncture  of 
the  head  and  neck  with  a  heavy  hatchet  or  ax ;  whichever  is  used  should  have 
a  straight,  sharp  edge.  For  killing  a  few  birds  occasionally,  any  block  will  do, 
but  if  much  killing  is  done,  it  is  best  to  have  a  solid  chopping  block  about 
two  feet  high,  with  a  smooth  top,  the  surface  of  which  will  not  be  spoiled 
by  the  hatchet  in  a  short  time.  After  the  head  is  severed,  the  bird  should  still 
be  held  in  the  hand,  the  neck  over  the  edge  of  the  block,  the  body  held  in 
this  position  by  the  flat  side  of  the  hatchet  until  the  bird  ceases  to  struggle, 
when  it  may  be  placed  on  the  ground  without  danger  of  bruising  itself  in  its 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 


313 


struggles.    When  many  birds  are  killed,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  have  a  pail  or 
other  vessels  to  catch  the  blood  and  prevent  its  being  wasted.1 

Sticking.  Sticking  is  done  with  a  short,2  sharp  knife,  the  cut  being  made 
either  in  the  neck  (outside),  severing  the  jugular  vein,  or  in  the  mouth  (inside), 
piercing  the  brain.  The  latter  method  is  preferred,  because  the  cut  is  con- 
cealed. The  bird  is  sometimes  stunned  by  striking  the  head  against  a  post  or 
by  striking  with  a  stick  on  the  head  or  back  before  sticking,  but  this  tends 
to  prevent  proper  bleeding,  and  is  not  as  commonly  practiced  as  formerly. 
The  details  of  killing  by  this  method  vary  considerably,  particularly  as  to  the 
position  of  the  operator  and  of  the  bird  when  the  cut  is  made.  These  depend 
upon  the  method  of  picking  and  upon  whether  each  picker  kills  his  own 
birds  or  whether  one  person  does  all  the  killing  for  a  gang  of  pickers. 


FIG.  320.    Sticking  fowl  held  with  FIG.  321.    Sticking  fowl  suspended 

the  hand  by  the  legs 

When  each  picker  kills  his  own  birds,  one  at  a  time  as  he  wants  them,  he 
usually  works  sitting  down,  with  a  coop  of  live  birds  at  one  side  and  a  box 
for  feathers  at  the  other,  and  holds  the  bird  between  his  knees  with  the  head 
extended  from  him  while  making  the  stick.  Sometimes,  however,  especially 
when  picking  large  birds  not  easily  stuck  in  that  position,  the  picker  stands 
up  and  holds  the  body  of  the  bird  between  his  arm  and  his  side,  with  the  head 
extended  forward  in  the  left  hand  in  a  convenient  position  for  sticking. 

When  one  person  does  the  killing  for  a  number  of  pickers,  as  is  usual 
when  poultry  is  scalded,  the  birds  are  often  suspended  in  loops,  by  the  feet, 

1  The  blood  may  be  fed  to  poultry  either  separate  or  in  mash. 

2  Regular  poultry-killing  knives  are  short,  but  some  pickers  use  a  common 
butcher  knife. 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


from  a  beam,  and  a  hook  with  a  weight  attached,  inserted  in  the  upper  mandible 
before  the  stick  is  made,  prevents  struggling.  This  method  is  also  used  in 
what  is  known  as  string  picking,  in  which  the  bird  is  picked  while  suspended 
instead  of  being  placed  on  a  bench  or  held  on  the  knees  of  the  picker. 

Methods  of  making  the  stick  vary  slightly,  the  object  in  all  cases  being 
the  same,  —  to  penetrate  the  brain  and  paralyze  the  bird  (causing  the  feathers  to 
loosen  so  that  they  are  easily  removed),  and  to  secure  free  bleeding.  The  method 
may  perhaps  be  best  described  as  a  stab  to  the  brain,  well  back  in  the  roof  of 
the  mouth  (the  thrust  cutting  crosswise),  then  a  twist  of  the  knife  to  bring  it  into 
position,  and  a  slit  forward  the  entire  length  of  the  roof  of  the  mouth.  Skill 
in  sticking  depends  first  on  acquiring  the  knack  of  it,  and  then  upon  practice. 
Even  a  good  sticker  does  not  always  make  a  good  stick.  Diagrams  are  some- 
times given  to  illustrate  the 
cut,  but  it  is  to  be  doubted 
whether  they  are  of  any  real 
assistance,  for  it  is  the  sense 
of  touch,  more  than  any- 
thing else,  that  regulates 
the  movement  of  the  knife. 
The  sticker  knows  when 
he  has  made  his  thrust  right 
by  a  peculiar  shiver  which 
the  bird  gives  and  which 
he  soon  learns  to  recognize 
by  touch.  He  presses  the 
knife  to  the  brain  until  he 
feels  this,  then  turns  it  and 
cuts  forward  to  give  the 
blood  free  vent,  being  careful  all  the  while  not  to  cut  through  to  damage  the 
outside  of  the  head  and,  perhaps,  his  fingers.  When  the  bird  is  to  be  dry 
picked,  the  removal  of  the  feathers  is  begun  at  once,  the  object  being  to  have 
it  picked  quite  clean  before  bleeding  stops.  When  the  bird  is  to  be  scalded, 
bleeding  should  be  finished  before  scalding  is  done,  or  the  heat  may  bring  the 
blood  to  the  skin  and  coagulate  it  there,  spoiling  the  appearance  of  the  carcass. 

Scalding.  This  process  is  used  much  more  extensively  and  with 
more  satisfactory  results  than  would  be  inferred  from  a  perusal  of 
most  of  the  special  articles  and  pamphlets  on  the  preparation  of 
poultry  for  market.  It  is  the  easiest  way  to  remove  the  feathers. 
When  properly  done  the  scalded  bird  presents  none  of  the  defects 
of  poorly  scalded  poultry,  and  can  be  distinguished  from  the  dry- 
picked  bird  only  by  experts.  Done  carelessly  or  by  one  who  does 
not  understand  it,  scalding  usually  results  in  spoiling  the  appear- 
ance of  every  bird  put  through  the  process. 


'FiG.  322.    How  ducks  are  handled  when  one  man 
kills  and  scalds 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 


315 


How  to  scald.  The  first  thing  in  scalding  poultry  is  to  have  a  vessel  of 
water  large  enough  to  allow  free  handling  of  the  birds.  The  next  thing  is  to 
maintain  the  water  at  the  desired  temperature  as  long  as  required.  The  tem- 
perature of  the  water  should  be  just  below  boiling.  When  a  single  chicken  or 
a  medium-sized  fowl  is  to  be  scalded,  it  may  be  done  in  a  twelve-  or  sixteen- 
quart  pail,  by  using  enough  water,  boiling  when  taken  from  the  stove,  to  make 
the  pail  a  little  over  half  full.  In  pouring  or  dipping  from  the  kettle  or  the  tank 
to  the  pail,  the  temperature  of  water  at  the  boiling  point  will  usually  be  suffi- 
ciently reduced  by  contact  with  the  cooler  air  as  the  water  passes  from  vessel 
to  vessel.  The  bird  should  be  taken  by  the  feet  and  soused  in  the  water  in  such 
a  way  that  the  feathers  will  be  rumpled  by  the  movement  and  the  water  will 
penetrate  nearly  to  the  skin  without  reaching  it.  If  the  bird  is  to  be  dressed 
with  the  head  on,  the  head  should  not  be  scalded  but  held  in  the  hand  while  the 
scalding  is  done.  It  is  not  as  easy  to  scald  in  this  way  as  with  the  head  off,  but 
with  a  little  care  good  work  may  be  done.  When  scalding  is  done  properly, 
the  effect  at  the  root  of  the  feather  is  to  steam  the  skin  without  scalding  it. 
The  time  required  varies  with  the  condition  and  density  of  the  feathers.  A 
chicken  or  a  molting  hen  may  need  only  a  plunge  so  rapid  that  the  skin  is 
hardly  affected,  though  the  scantiness  of  plumage  allows  the  water  to  touch  it. 
A  full-feathered  fowl,  especially  an  old  one,  may  require  several  plunges.  The 
effect  on  the  feathers  is  ascertained  by  plucking  a  few  from  the  thigh  near  the 
hock  joint.  If  these  come  easily,  there  should  be  no  difficulty  in  removing 
the  others.  Only  one  or  two  birds  can  be  scalded  in  the  same  water  in  this  way, 
but  more  may  be  scalded  if  boiling  water  is  added.  For  larger  birds  a  boiler 
or  a  tub  may  be  used.  Results  of  scalding  in  this  way  are  not  uniform,  how- 
ever, and  if  any  considerable  number  are  to  be  scalded,  a  set-kettle,  under  which 
a  slow  fire  can  be  kept,  should  be  used.  This  gives  a  body  of  water  large 
enough  for  quick  and  thorough  work  in  scalding,  and  after  a  few  trials  of  the 
water  on  the  stock  with  which  he  is  working,  an  expert  will  put  most  of  his 
birds  through  without  a  blemish  due  to  poor  scalding.  If  a  bird  has  been  well 
scalded,  only  the  stiff  tail  and  wing  feathers  need  be  pulled  out.  The  others  will 
rub  off,  except  pinfeathers  in  birds  not  in  full  plumage.  If  handled  immedi- 
ately after  scalding,  the  feathers  are  usually  a  little  too  hot  for  the  comfort  of 
the  picker.  They  are  removed  just  as  easily  after  they  become  cool  enough  to 
handle,  and  with  little  greater  difficulty  at  any  time  within  ten  or  twelve  minutes. 

Ducks  and  geese.  Waterfowl  are  much  more  difficult  to  scald  than  other 
poultry.  Their  dense  plumage  is  not  so  easily  penetrated  by  the  water,  and  the 
ease  with  which  the  feathers  on  the  thigh  are  removed  is  not  as  accurate  an 
index  of  the  general  condition.  A  common  practice  is  to  wrap  them  in  burlap 
(old  grain  sacks)  after  scalding,  and  allow  them  to  steam  in  the  hot,  wet  feathers 
for  some  minutes  before  beginning  to  pick.  Even  then  a  supplementary  scald  is 
sometimes  necessary,  after  a  part  of  the  feathers  have  been  removed.  In  pack- 
ing establishments  steam  is  often  used  for  scalding,  giving  a  dry  scald.  The 
steam  used  is  sometimes  taken  from  a  pipe  or  a  hose,  but  direct  steaming  is 
said  to  be  more  satisfactory.  Some  of  the  smaller  packing  establishments  use 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


a  method  of  steaming  ducks  which  may  be  applied  anywhere.  On  a  common 
round,  wide-topped  laundry  stove  is  placed  a  wash  boiler  with  about  three  or 
four  inches  of  water  in  the  bottom ;  in  the  boiler  is  a  wooden  frame  which 
holds  the  bird  in  the  steam  without  allowing  it  to  get  into  the  water.  The  bird 
is  placed  in  the  boiler  and  steamed  for  about  one  and  one  half  minutes  on 
one  side,  then  turned  and  steamed  for  about  the  same  length  of  time  on  the 
other  side. 

In  picking  ducks  and  geese  powdered  rosin  is  sometimes  used  to  assist 
in  removing  the  fine  down  left  after  the  outside  feathers  are  removed.  The 
rosin  is  rubbed  onto  the  down,  which  mats,  and  is  then  more  easily  removed. 


FIG.  323.    First  step  in  lap  picking: 
stripping  feathers  from  breast 


FIG.  324.    Second  step  in  lap  picking: 
stripping  feathers  from  thigh 


In  scald  picking  the  picker  usually  works  standing,  with  the  bird  on  a  table 
or  a  bench  before  him,  and  rough  picks  with  the  hands  and  \hzfronts  (not  the 
tips)  of  his  thumbs  and  fingers.  Most  pickers  remove  stiff  tail  and  wing  feathers 
first,  but  some  leave  them  until  the  last.  It  makes  little  difference.  The  im- 
portant thing  is  for  the  picker  to  have  a  systematic  way  and  to  pick  clean  as 
he  goes,  except  for  stubs  and  pinfeathers,  which  must  be  removed  one  by  one. 

Dry  picking.  The  removal  of  the  feathers  without  wetting  is  the 
method  favored  by  most  eastern  markets,  and  is  best  adapted  to 
poultry  that  is  to  be  kept  in  storage.  It  may  be  done  at  any  time 
after  killing.  Pigeons  and  guineas  and  game  birds  of  all  kinds  are 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  317 

marketed  with  the  feathers  on.  In  general  practice  with  poultry, 
however,  dry  picking  is  done  while  the  bird  is  dying,  when  it  has 
lost  consciousness  and  is  insensible  to  pain,  but  when  the  relation 
between  nervous  and  muscular  systems  still  continues.  Good  work 
in  dry  picking  depends  first  upon  the  proper  sticking  of  the  bird.1 

NOTE.  When  the  sticking  is  well  done,  the  feathers  come  off  quite  as  easily 
as  with  good  scalding,  but  with  a  poor  stick  they  come  harder,  and  an  inexpert 
picker  is  likely  to  break  the  skin  and  perhaps  tear  the  birds  badly.  As  in  scald 
picking,  the  picker  works 
as  much  as  possible  with 
his  hands,  wetting  them 
at  intervals  to  make  the 
feathers  stick  to  them, 
removing  the  feathers  in 
handfuls,  rubbing  them  off 
and  unless  pinfeathers  are 
very  small,  taking  them  with 
the  others.  The  pinfeathers 
and  stubs  that  are  not  taken 
in  this  way  must  be  re- 
moved one  by  one.  For 

this  (in  both  methods)  the     ^  ^          r        ,^ 

FIG.  325.   Gang  of  poultry  pickers  dressing  geese 
professional     picker     uses 

a  short  knife,  either  seizing  the  stub  between  his  thumb  and  the  blade,  or 
shaving  it  off.  Practice,  and  a  certain  aptitude  for  such  work,  are  required  to 

1  The  principle  upon  which  this  process  is  based  is  best  explained  by  refer- 
ence to  a  phenomenon  which  every  one  with  a  little  experience  in  handling  poul- 
try has  had  occasion  to  observe.  If  in  catching  a  bird  one  grasps  it  by  the  tail, 
some  of  the  feathers  are  likely  to  be  pulled  out,  and  if  the  hold  is  only  on  the 
feathers,  the  bird  will  probably  escape.  If  the  bird  is  caught  by  the  thigh,  unless 
the  hand  quickly  closes  very  tightly  on  it,  a  good  many  feathers  may  be  pulled 
out  just  by  the  action  of  the  closing  of  the  hand  on  the  leg,  and  by  the  momentum 
of  the  bird.  Not  infrequently,  when  caught  by  the  back  with  so  insecure  a  hold 
that  the  person  catching  it  feels  that  he  has  hardly  more  than  touched  the  bird,  it 
loses  feathers.  Considering  how  hard  these  feathers  usually  are  to  get  out  when  he 
wants  them  removed,  the  poultry  keeper  always  feels  somewhat  surprised  at  the 
ease  with  which  they  come  out  under  these  circumstances.  There  is  plainly  a 
direct  relation  between  the  mental  condition  of  the  bird  and  the  tenacity  of  the 
feathers.  When  the  bird  is  in  a  state  of  fright,  the  feathers  loosen,  and  their 
loosening  may  enable  the  bird  to  escape.  The  same  effect  on  the  feathers  is 
secured  by  paralyzing  the  bird  by  stunning  or  by  piercing  the  brain.  It  is  also 
secured  when  the  bird  is  killed  by  dislocating  the  neck,  or  by  wringing  the  neck, 
or  by  beheading,  though  in  the  last  two  cases  the  complete  severance  of  the  head 
makes  it  impossible  to  direct  the  flow  of  blood  and  begin  picking  immediately, 
and  so  the  feathers  are  relaxed  a  second  time  by  scalding. 


318  POULTRY  CULTURE 

make  a  good,  fast  picker.  Aptitude  consists  largely  in  working  methodically 
when  removing  the  feathers,  and  in  picking  as  clean  as  possible  at  every  step. 
As  to  the  division  of  the  work,  practice  varies  largely  according  to  the  quality 
of  help  to  be  obtained.  Where  enough  capable  pickers  can  be  obtained,  each 
finishes  his  own  bird ;  where  the  supply  of  good  pickers  is  short,  the  skilled 
pickers  often  rough  pick  the  birds  and  employ  less  expert  persons  to  remove 
the  stubs  and  pinfeathers. 

Scalding  and  dry  picking  compared.  After  the  knack  of  sticking  is  acquired, 
dry  picking  is  often  more  convenient.  Unless  the  bird  is  properly  killed,  it  is 
usually  much  easier  for  a  novice  in  picking  to  get  the  feathers  off  by  scalding, 
even  if  he  has  to  build  a  fire  and  wait  for  the  water  to  heat.  In  the  results  of 
inexpert  use  of  the  two  methods  there  is  little  to  choose,  but,  judging  by  the 
comparative  scarcity  of  good  scalders,  it  is  much  easier  to  acquire  the  knack  of 
sticking  than  to  learn  to  scald  right.  A  poor  scalder  is  apt  to  disfigure  all  his 
birds  and,  if  he  has  never  seen  poultry  well  scalded,  to  think  that  it  is  unavoid- 
able. In  dry  picking  it  is  not  possible  to  miss  seeing  the  difference  in  good  and 
poor  work,  the  inexpert  picker's  great  difficulty  being  to  avoid  tearing  the  skin. 
He  can  therefore  judge  his  own  work  better,  and  with  practice  is  almost  sure 
to  become  passably  expert.  Dry-picked  poultry  is  said  to  keep  longer  in  cold 
storage  than  even  the  best  scalded  poultry.  For  use  within  a  few  weeks  after 
killing,  the  advantage  of  dry  picking  over  good  scalding  is  not  apparent.  The 
use  of  methods,  however,  is  not  a  matter  of  choice  with  the  producer  who 
dresses  his  own  poultry.  He  must  follow  the  custom  in  his  market,  and  scald 
pick  or  dry  pick,  or  perhaps  do  some  of  both,  according  to  the  disposition 
to  be  made  of  his  stock. 


Market  requirements  as  to  picking.  The  large  eastern  city  mar- 
kets and  pleasure  resorts  prefer  dry-picked  poultry.  Inland,  western, 
and  southern  markets,  almost  without  exception,  want  the  poultry 
for  local  consumption  scald  picked  ;  but  at  many  of  these  points 
poultry  shipped  to  eastern  markets  is  dry  picked.  Customs,  how- 
ever, are  not  consistently  governed  by  the  market  preference  ;  con- 
ditions affecting  shipment  and  the  disposition  of  the  goods  may 
determine  the  method,  and  the  poultry  trade  presents  some  striking 
anomalies  in  practice  at  this  point.  Thus,  while  the  East  prefers  dry- 
picked  poultry,  a  large  proportion,  perhaps  the  greater  part,  of  the 
ducks  produced  there  are  scalded.  Eastern  turkeys  are  often  scalded, 
while  western  turkeys  for  the  eastern  market  are  mostly  dry  picked. 
Poultry  from  the  states  in  the  Mississippi  Valley  east  of  the  river  is 
often  scalded,  even  by  the  packers,  for  the  eastern  market ;  while  in 
the  states  west  of  the  river  the  poultry  going  east  is  all  dry  picked. 
The  poultry  from  points  nearest  the  market,  reaching  it  quickly  and 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 


319 


likely  to  be  consumed  at  once,  is  scalded  (that  being  the  cheaper 
method),  while  that  which  takes  longer  to  reach  the  market  and  is 
not  so  likely  to  find  ready  sale,  and  may  have  to  go  into  cold  storage, 
is  dry  picked  (that  being  the  method  which  best  insures  its  keeping). 

At  bottom  it  is  not  so  much  a  question  of  method  as  of  good 
work  by  either  method.  Good  poultry  marketed  in  good  condition 
will  bring  about  the  same  price  scalded  or  dry  picked,  when  the 
demand  is  brisk,  but  when  trade  is  dull,  poultry  dressed  by  the 
method  not  favored  in  a  market  is  hard  to  move  on  that  market. 

Importance  of  proper  cooling.  In  respect  to  its  effect  on  quality, 
cooling  is  the  most  important  part  of  the  preparation  of  poultry 
for  food.  Enormous  quantities  of  good  poultry  are  damaged 
or  spoiled  entirely  because  not  properly  cooled  when  killed.  The 
object  of  cooling  is  to  remove  the  animal  heat  and  check  decom- 
position. The  sooner  the  body  is  cooled,  the  longer  it  will  keep 
and  the  better  will  be  the  texture  and  flavor  of  the  meat.  In  cold 
weather,  poultry  may  be  cooled  in  the  air  (dry  cooled).  When  the 
temperature  is  too  high  for  rapid  cooling  in  the  air,  poultry  is 
cooled  first  in  water  of  the  ordinary  temperature  at  which  it  comes 
from  the  well  or  hydrant,  and  then  in  ice  water.  Cooling  the  warm 
body  suddenly  in  ice  water  is  less  effective  than  beginning  with 
water  of  a  higher  temperature.  It  is  supposed  that  too  rapid  chill- 
ing at  the  surface  diminishes  its  conductivity  and  allows  the  animal 
heat  inside  to  start  decomposition  more  actively.  Whenever  it  can  be 
done,  dry  cooling  is  preferred  to  cooling  in  water.  When  the  days 
are  warm  and  the  nights  cool  it  is  usual  to  put  poultry  into  water 
in  barrels,  tubs,  or  tanks  as  soon  as  killed,  and  at  night  to  hang  it 
up  or  place  it  on  racks  to  finish  cooling.  The  killing  should  always 
be  timed  so  as  to  give  poultry  sufficient  time  to  cool  before  being 
packed.  When  it  is  .to  be  shipped  only  a  few  hundred  miles  or  packed 
in  ice,  cooling  for  a  night  and  a  part  of  a  day  (according  to  the  time 
of  killing)  should  be  enough.  If  the  poultry  is  to  be  shipped  dry 
packed  for  a  long  distance,  it  should  be  more  thoroughly  cooled. 
It  is  of  much  more  importance  that  poultry  should  be  well  cooled 
before  a  long  shipment  than  that  it  should  be  started  on  its  journey 
quickly.  The  condition  of  the  poultry  at  the  start  is  a  more  important 
factor  in  its  keeping  than  the  time  in  transit.  Packers  nearly  a  week 
from  their  market  cool  poultry  two  or  three  days  before  shipping. 


320 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Shaping.  The  operation  of  shaping  is  done  sometimes  as  the 
birds  are  cooling,  sometimes  as  they  are  packed.  The  object  is  to 
make  the  bird  appear  as  plump  as  possible.  The  advantage  is 
greatest  with  poultry  in  fair  condition  but  not  noticeably  well 
meated.  In  Europe  a  number  of  methods  of  shaping  are  practiced, 
some  even  going  so  far  as  to  wrap  each  bird  tightly  in  cloth  while 
cooling.  A  more  common  method  there,  used  to  some  extent  in 
Canada,  is  to  place  the  birds  in  a  squatting  position  in  V-shaped 
troughs,  with  a  weight  on  the  back  of  each  bird.  A  similar  but 
simpler  method  is  used  by  some  packers  in  the  United  States,  the 
birds  being  held  in  a  squatting  position  on  a  rack  by  strips  from  I  ^  to 
2  inches  high,  about  6  or  8  inches  apart  in  front  and  coming  together 
at  the  rear,  a  board  the  length  of  the  rack  serving  as  a  weight  for 
all  the  birds  on  it.  With  good,  plump  stock  there  is  little  occasion 
for  such  shaping  for  American  markets.  The  object  of  it  is  evi- 
dently deceptive,  —  to  press  in  the  breast  and  hip  bones  and  give 
an  appearance  of  greater  meatiness  than  exists.  Good  stock  does 
not  need  this  treatment  for  these  markets.  All  that  is  necessary  is 
to  pack  in  such  position  that  the  carcass  will  present  a  symmetrical 
appearance  and  show  for  just  what  it  is. 

Grading.  The  proper  sorting  and  grading  of  dressed  poultry  is 
of  less  importance  to  the  ordinary  producer  than  to  the  packer, 
but  still  it  should  have  his  attention.  Packers  make  many  grades, 
according  to  weight,  quality,  condition,  etc.  Producers  marketing 
their  own  poultry  usually  make  no  more  than  three  grades  of  any 
one  kind  of  poultry,  — firsts,  seconds,  and  culls,  —  and  unless  oper- 
ations have  been  very  unsuccessful,  the  proportion  of  seconds  and 
culls  should  be  small. 

Firsts  are  choice,  well-finished  birds,  not  damaged  in  dressing. 

Seconds  are  slightly  inferior  birds,  and  firsts  slightly  damaged 
in  dressing. 

Culls  are  decidedly  poor  and  badly  damaged  birds. 

Whether  selling  single  birds  to  individual  consumers  or  selling 
in  quantity,  the  poultry  keeper  should  carefully  avoid  putting  in- 
ferior stuff  with  his  better  grades.  The  object  of  grading  is  not  to 
pass  off  all  that  he  has  with  the  highest  grade  that  it  can  get  by,  but 
to  assort  it  in  conformity  with  the  general  scale  of  prices  and  de- 
mands of  the  trade.  There  is  nothing  to  be  gained  in  money  by 


FIG.  326.    The  side  pack,  —  roasting 
chickens 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS          321 

grading  poultry  too  high.  There 
is  more  likely  to  be  a  loss,  for  the 
inferior  birds  packed  with  those 
of  a  better  grade  detract  from  the 
appearance  of  the  lot  and  often 
reduce  the  price.  In  addition  to 
grading  each  kind  of  poultry, 
the  shipper  should  keep  different 
kinds,  though  of  like  quality,  sep- 
arate, and  as  far  as  practicable 
should  have  each  package  of 
birds  uniform  in  size.  It  is  much 
easier  to  do  this  now,  when  small 
packages  are  in  vogue,  than  it 

was  when  most  poultry  was  packed  in  barrels  and  large  boxes. 
Packing.    Two  methods  of  packing  are  used,  —  dry  packing 

and  ice  packing,  the  former  being  employed  when  weather  and 

distance  permit,  and  the  latter  when  there  is  danger  of  poultry 

spoiling  in  transit  un- 
less iced. 

Dry-packed  poultry 

is  mostly  shipped  in 

boxes.    For  irregular 

and  small  shipments 

any  clean  second-hand 

box  of  convenient  size 

may    be    used.     For 

regular  shipments  of 

choice    poultry    it    is 

better  to  use  special 

boxes  holding  one  or 

two  dozen  birds,  and  of 

dimensions  to  suit  the 

sizes  of  the  birds.   For 

regular  short-distance 

shipments  (by  express) 

Of  poultry  going  into  im-      FlG.  327.    Style  of  packing  fowls  for  export.    (Pho- 
mediate    consumption       tograph  from  United  States  Bureau  of  Chemistry) 


322 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


it  is  best  to  use  returnable  boxes  very  substantially  built,  with 
covers  held  in  place  with  bolts  and  nuts,  and  with  handles  on  the 
ends  for  convenience  in  lifting.  For  long-distance  shipments  and 
for  lots  which  it  may  be  desired  to  hold  in  storage,  such  light  boxes 
as  the  poultry  packers  use  are  more  suitable.  Packers  making  many 
grades  of  poultry  and  assorting  carefully  as  to  size  use  boxes  of 
different  dimensions,  to  fit  one  or  two  dozen  birds  of  each  size. 
The  producer  will  usually  find  it  more  satisfactory  to  use  a  few 
standard-sized  boxes  adapted  to  the  sizes  of  birds  of  which  he  ships 
most,  putting  fewer  large  birds,  and  a  large  number  of  small  ones, 
in  a  box.  While  the  dozen  is  a  convenient  numerical  division, 
poultry  nearly  always  is  sold  by  weight 1  and  even  when  the  trade 
prefers  one-  or  two-dozen  lots,  an  occasional  package  containing 
less  or  more  than  the  round  number  will  sell  as  readily  as  the  rest. 
Styles  of  box  packing  are  shown  in  Figs.  326-328. 


STANDARD  SIZES  OF  BOXES 

Inches  inside 

For  1 2  broilers,  24  Ib.  and  under  per  dozen     .     .     .  1 6  x  1 5  x  3  \ 

For  12  broilers,  25  to  30  Ib.  per  dozen 17x16x4 

For  12  chickens,  30  to  35  Ib.  per  dozen      .     .     .     .  18x17x4 

For  12  chickens,  43  to  47  Ib.  per  dozen      .     .     .     .  21x19x4! 

For  12  roasters,  48  to  59  Ib.  per  dozen       .     .     .     .  19x16x8 

For  12  fowl,  54  Ib.  and  upward  per  dozen  .     .     .     .  19x16x8 

For  12  ducks,  54  Ib.  per  dozen 19x16x8 

For  1 2  fowl,  60  Ib.  per  dozen 18x17x9 

For  12  fowl,  38  Ib.  and  under  per  dozen     .     .     .     .  14  x  I2|  x  7 

For  12  chickens,  30  to  40  Ib.  per  dozen      .     .     .     .  151  x  14  x  6\ 

For  1 2  average  turkeys  or  geese  .     .     .     .     .     .     .  24  x  1 9  x  1 1 

Boxes  for  the  smallest  birds  may  be  made  of  1-inch  stuff  for  sides,  and 
^-inch  for  ends ;  boxes  for  birds  of  medium  weight,  of  -|  inch  stuff  for  sides 
and  |  inch  for  ends ;  those  for  heavy-weight  birds,  of  \  inch  stuff  for  sides 
and  |  inch  for  ends.  If  many  boxes  are  needed,  it  will  pay  to  buy  regulation 
sizes  in  knockdown  bundles,  or,  if  there  is  a  box  factory  near  to  have  stuff  got 
out  to  measure  there  and  put  it  together  as  wanted.  Sometimes  empty  packing 
cases  of  suitable  material  can  be  bought  so  cheap  that  the  poultryman  can  afford 
to  cut  them  up  and  make  his  own  packing  boxes  at  odd  times. 

1  There  are  a  few  places  where  birds  are  sold  at  so  much  apiece,  or  so  much  a 
dozen,  without  regard  to  weight. 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 


323 


There  are  two  principal  points  to  be  observed  in  packing :  (i)  that 
the  birds  be  packed  solidly,  so  that  they  will  not  shift  when  the 
package  is  handled ;  (2)  that  the  package,  when  opened,  present 
an  orderly  arrangement  and  show  the  goods  to  advantage.  The 
removal  of  the  cover  should  show  either  all  breasts,  all  backs,  or  all 
sides,  and  legs,  heads,  and  wings  all  in  the  same  relative  positions. 

Ice-packed  poultry  is  usually  shipped  in  large  barrels.  A  layer 
of  clean  chipped  ice  is  first  placed  on  the  bottom  of  the  barrel, 


FIG.  328.    Two  outside  top  boxes,  standard  roaster  pack  ;  top  center  and  bottom 

row,  standard  broiler  pack.    (Photograph  from  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry,  United 

States  Department  of  Agriculture) 

then  a  layer  of  poultry,  packed  in  a  circle  with  backs  up  and  feet 
toward  the  center,  the  poultry  nowhere  touching  the  sides  of  the 
barrel  ;  then  a  layer  of  ice  and  another  layer  of  poultry,  and  so 
on  until  the  barrel  is  full  to  within  six  inches  of  the  top,  when  it 
is  filled  with  larger  pieces  of  ice  and  covered  with  bagging.  In 
very  warm  weather  a  large  chunk  of  ice  put  on  top  (under  the 
bagging)  will  add  to  the  safety  of  the  shipment.  Poultry  thor- 
oughly cooled  before  packing,  and  properly  packed  and  iced,  should 
be  safe  for  two  days'  shipment  by  express  or  for  four  or  five  days 


324  POULTRY  CULTURE 

in  a  refrigerator  car.  Natural  ice  is  better  for  packing  poultry  than 
artificial  ice,  because  it  melts  faster,  and  the  cold  water  percolating 
through  the  layers  of  poultry  keeps  them  at  a  uniformly  cool  tem- 
perature. If  the  ice  melts  too  slowly,  the  poultry  may  arrive  at  its 
destination  in  poorer  condition  with  much  ice  remaining  than  if 
the  ice  has  all  melted. 

Feathers.  Wherever  a -considerable  quantity  of  poultry  is  dressed 
it  will  pay  to  save  and  sell  the  feathers.  The  feathers  of  ducks 
and  geese,  if  handled  and  disposed  of  properly,  should  pay  for  the 
picking.  Other  feathers  are  less  valuable  but  still  worth  taking 
care  of.  Stiff  and  soft  feathers,  white  and  colored  feathers,  and  the 
feathers  of  each  kind  of  poultry  should  be  kept  separate.  The 
feathers  from  dry-picked  stock  are  usually  in  better  condition  than 
those  from  scalded  stock,  but  with  a  little  care  scalded  feathers  can 
be  cured  so  that  they  will  sell  well,  though  not  as  prime  feathers. 
The  wing  and  tail  feathers  require  no  curing ;  the  body  feathers 
should  be  placed  in  bins  or  in  a  loft  and  forked  over  at  intervals 
until  the  quills  are  thoroughly  dry. 

Shipping  live  poultry.  Ventilated  coops  with  solid  bottoms  and 
open  sides  and  tops,  made  of  slats  or  wire  netting  over  a  frame,  are 
used  for  shipping  live  poultry.  Standard  coops  used  by  large  ship- 
pers are  made  of  hardwood  strips  reenforced  with  twisted  wire,  — 
for  fowls,  2x3  feet,  1 2  inches  high ;  for  turkeys,  2x3  feet, 
1 6  inches  high.  A  coop  with  a  2  x  3  feet  bottom  is  large  enough 
for  a  dozen  medium-sized  fowls,  and  for  from  one  to  two  dozen 
chickens,  according  to  size.  Filled  with  live  poultry  it  makes  as 
large  and  as  heavy  a  package  as  can  be  easily  handled  by  one  man. 
This  is  the  size  preferred  by  commission  men  and  expressmen ; 
but  many  shippers  make  a  larger  coop,  with  floor  from  30  to  36 
inches  wide  by  4  feet  long,  usually  with  a  partition  in  the  middle. 
These  coops  are  usually  homemade.  Poultry  is  not  often  shipped 
in  coop  lots  over  distances  so  great  that  the  birds  must  be  fed  and 
watered  in  transit.  Long-distance  shipments  are  usually  made -by 
middlemen  either  in  cars  especially  fitted  for  poultry,  or  with  an 
attendant  to  feed  and  water  on  the  journey. 

Sorting  and  grading.  Uniformity  is  as  important  with  live  as 
with  dressed  poultry.  The  birds  shipped  in  a  coop  (or  in  a  com- 
partment of  a  double  coop)  should  be  of  the  same  kind  and  as 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  325 

nearly  as  possible  of  the  same  age,  size,  and  weight.  It  is  also  an 
advantage  to  have  them  of  the  same  color,  fory  while  color  is  not 
of  such  importance  in  market  as  in  fancy  poultry,  as  far  as  it  con- 
tributes to  uniformity  of  appearance  it  makes  a  lot  more  salable, 
and  often  brings  a  little  better  price.  In  general  it  is  advisable  to 
have  each  lot  of  the  same  sex,  —  especially  in  fowls  past  broiler 
size.  Grading  is  less  essential  when  shipping  to  buyers  who  dress 
to  sell  than  when  shipping  to  firms  which  sell  the  birds  alive. 
Concerns  dressing  poultry  and  buying  direct  from  producers  will 
usually  sort  mixed  lots  as  they  kill  and  make  returns  accordingly. 

Eggs.  The  preparation  of  eggs  for  market  is  the  simplest  of 
matters.  They  must  be  whole,  clean,  assorted  for  color  and  size, 
and  packed  in  packages  of  suitable  size.  As  marketed  by  a  pro- 
ducer they  should  always  be  fresh.  If  a  poultry  keeper  wishes, 
either  for  experiment  or  for  home  use,  to  preserve  eggs,  that  is 
solely  his  own  affair.  If  he  undertakes  to  sell  at  the  same  time 
preserved  and  fresh  eggs,  he  will  soon  find  that  all  his  eggs  are 
under  suspicion  and  that  he  has  damaged  his  best  trade.  The 
poultry  keeper  who  wants  to  make  a  reputation  for  good  eggs,  and 
to  get  the  highest  prices,  should  keep  rigidly  to  the  practice  of 
selling  only  fresh  eggs. 

Cleaning  eggs.  If  the  poultry  houses  are  clean,  the  nests  kept 
in  good  condition,  and  the  hens  laying  eggs  with  good  shells,  the 
proportion  of  eggs  requiring  cleaning  before  being  marketed  should 
be  small.  As  far  as  possible,  wetting  the  shell  is  to  be  avoided,  for 
it  destroys  the  "  bloom  "  which  is  the  conspicuous,  distinguishing 
feature  of  the  fresh  egg,  disappearing  with  age  and  handling.  If 
an  egg  is  only  slightly  soiled  it  may  sometimes  be  cleaned  by  rub- 
bing lightly  with  a  dry  cloth.  If  this'  does  not  answer,  a  slightly 
moistened  cloth  may  remove  the  dirt.  Eggs  that  are  badly  soiled 
should  be  washed  in  warm  (not  hot)  water,  and  dried  at  once  with 
a  soft  cloth.  The  warm  water  removes  the  dirt  more  quickly  than 
cold,  and  eggs  washed  in  warm  water  are  more  easily  dried.  No 
soap  or  other  cleansing  preparation  should  be  used,  —  only  clean 
water.  If  the  shell  is  stained,  as  sometimes  it  is,  with  manure  or 
'from  being  wet  in  the  nest,  it  is  better  to  keep  the  egg  for  home 
cooking.  It  is  not  injured  except  in  appearance,  but  it  is  salable 
only  as  a  "  dirty  "  at  about  half  price. 


326  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Sorting  eggs  for  color.  Uniformity  in  the  color  of  the  shell 
is  desirable,  even  .though  the  market  has  not  a  color  preference. 
Mixed  lots  of  eggs  do  not  look  as  well  or  sell  as  readily  as  lots 
of  uniform  color.  Eggs  are  classed  according  to  color,  as  white, 
gray,  and  brown. 

White  eggs  are  not,  as  a  rule,  of  a  dead-white  color,  though  that 
is  sometimes  found ;  they  are  nearly  always  slightly  tinted.  Eggs 
that  are  uniform  in  color  and  look  white  unless  closely  compared 
with  something  whiter  may  be  classed  as  white. 

Gray  eggs  are  eggs  that  are  plainly  not  white,  yet  not  dark 
enough  to  be  considered  brown.  The  color  of  the  shell  usually 
tends  toward  black  rather  than  toward  red  or  brown,  but  extremely 
light-brown  eggs  may  be  classed  as  gray. 

Brown  eggs  exhibit  a  wide  range  of  color,  from  a  light,  golden 
brown  to  a  reddish  chocolate.  Ordinary  brown  eggs  are  light 
brown.  What  are  known  to  the  trade  as  dark-brown  eggs  are 
mostly  medium  in  the  range  of  shades  of  brown  found  in  eggs. 
Very  dark-brown  eggs  are  comparatively  rare  and  are  not  often  seen 
in  quantity.  Commercially,  the  darkest-brown  eggs  are  not  favored 
beyond  the  ordinary  dark  brown  eggs.  Where  the  range  of  shades 
is  so  wide  the  uniformity  of  color  presented  by  ordinary  white  eggs 
graded  with  a  little  care  can  be  secured  only  by  a  more  discriminat- 
ing selection  than  it  is  usually  practicable  to  make.  For  all  ordi- 
nary trade  purposes  it  is  enough  to  make  two  grades  of  brown 
eggs,  light  and  dark  (medium),  discarding,  as  not  brown,  the  white 
or  gray  eggs  sometimes  laid  by  brown-egg  stock,  and  packing  the 
darkest  eggs  with  the  medium.  An  appearance  of  greater  uniform- 
ity of  color  may  be  secured  by  a  little  care  in  placing  the  eggs  so 
that  those  of  different  shades  are  not  placed  at  random  but  arranged 
according  to  shade,  —  not  so  accurately  that  the  shades  blend  per- 
fectly, but  with  care  to  avoid  marked  differences  in  shades  of  eggs 
in  adjoining  compartments. 

Grading  for  size.  Grading  for  size  consists  principally  in  dis- 
carding from  lots  designed  for  ordinary  trade  all  very  large  and  all 
very  small  eggs.  The  compartments  of  boxes  and  cases  used  for 
packing  eggs  for  market  are  usually  of  pasteboard  sufficiently  elastic' 
to  allow  the  larger  eggs  to  spread  the  sides  of  the  compartment, 
the  smaller  eggs  being  placed  in  the  adjoining  compartments  ;  but 


PREPARATION  OF  POULTRY  PRODUCTS          327 

eggs  that  are  so  long  that  they  project  above  the  filler  are  almost 
sure  to  be  broken,  because  the  board  between  the  layers  of  eggs  is 
less  elastic  and  because,  when  the  lower  layer  is  covered,  it  is  not 
possible  to  adapt  short  eggs  in  one  layer  to  long  ones  in  the  one 
below.  Eggs  that  are  too  long  for  the  fillers  should  not  be  packed 
in  them.  A  distinction  should,  however,  be  made  between  a  long 
egg  of  ordinary  width  which  cannot  be  placed  so  that  its  end  will 
not  project  from  its  compartment,  and  a  long,  narrow  egg  which 
will  fit  diagonally  into  the  compartment.  Of  eggs  that  are  too  wide 
for  the  compartments,  as  many  may  be  used  as  can  be  put  in  with- 
out danger  to  those  in  adjacent  compartments.  Provided  the  shell 
is  strong,  an  egg  of  suitable  size  need  not  be  discarded  for  any  of 
the  common  eccentricities  of  shape,  as  corrugated  shell  or  marked 
departure  from  the  oval  form. 

In  a  general  way  the  size  of  the  compartment  in  the  standard 
egg  box  and  case  regulates  the  size  in  grading  choice  eggs.  Eggs 
weighing  from  twenty-five  to  twenty-eight  ounces  to  the  dozen  will 
fit  into  the  fillers  with  very  few  to  discard  because  too  large  or  too 
small.  Eggs  weighing  more  than  twenty-eight  ounces  to  the  dozen 
will  have  a  larger  proportion  of  those  too  large  for  the  fillers.  Eggs 
weighing  less  than  twenty-five  ounces  to  the  dozen  will  contain 
many  so  small  that  when  packed  the  compartments  seem  only  half 
or  two  thirds  full.  Small  eggs  never  show  to  poorer  advantage  than 
when  packed  in  this  manner. 

Egg  cases  and  boxes.  The  standard  wholesale  package  for  eggs 
is  a  light  wooden  box,  or  case,  with  two  compartments,  each  hold- 
ing fifteen  dozen  eggs,  —  thirty  dozen  to  the  case.  Cases  of  simi- 
lar construction  holding  thirty-six  dozen  are  also  used,  but  not  so 
extensively.  In  general  trade  the  cases  are  sometimes  returnable 
and  sometimes  sold  with  the  eggs.  Both  producers  and  collectors 
making  regular  shipments  of  strictly  fresh  eggs  often  use  more 
substantial  cases,  always  returnable,  marked  with  their  own  stencil, 
and  such  cases  are  sometimes  painted  a  distinctive  color.  For  ship- 
ment by  ordinary  express,  they  are  safer  than  the  light  trade  case, 
though  the  latter  is  as  good  or  better  for  carload  lots  and  for  storage. 

For  retailing  eggs  in  original  packages  smaller  cases  are  used. 
Where  a  consumer  uses  considerable  quantities,  but  less  than  a  case 
weekly,  —  say  from  fifteen  to  twenty  dozen,  —  the  poultry  keeper 


328  POULTRY  CULTURE 

who  supplies  him  often  uses  a  one-compartment  case  just  half  the 
standard  size,  for  fifteen  dozen,  and  for  a  larger  number  makes  or 
has  made  boxes  that  will  hold  just  the  required  number  and  has 
the  consumer's  address  as  well  as  his  own  painted  on  the  boxes. 
For  smaller  lots  to  be  shipped  by  express,  smaller  boxes  are  made, 
holding  from  two  to  ten  dozen.  For  eggs  to  be  delivered  direct 
from  producer  to  consumer  the  cheap  pasteboard  egg  boxes  (hold- 
ing one  dozen  each)  which  retail  grocers  and  provision  dealers  use 
are  commonly  used  by  poultrymen.  For  those  who  require  large 
quantities  of  them  manufacturers  will  print  on  the  boxes  special 
labels  or  designs,  which  add  to  the  attractiveness  of  the  package 
and  also  advertise  the  goods.  However  small  the  quantity  of  eggs 
to  be  sold,  the  most  satisfactory  way  to  handle  them  is  to  pack 
them  in  boxes. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

MARKETING  POULTRY  PRODUCTS 

Poultry  keepers  and  middlemen.  To  dispose  of  his  produce  with 
the  largest  possible  profit  to  himself  is  the  aim  of  every  poultry 
keeper.  It  is  commonly  assumed  that  this  is  best  accomplished  by 
dispensing  with  middlemen  and  selling  direct  to  the  consumer, 
and  that  every  time  a  middleman  is  eliminated  from  the  number 
concerned  in  the  collection  and  distribution  of  eggs  and  poultry, 
the  producer  is  benefited.  Under  some  circumstances  this  may 
be  true ;  considering  the  interests  of  the  producer  in  particular 
instances,  it  will  often  appear  that  he  makes  much  larger  profits 
by  selling  direct  to  consumers  than  by  selling  through  middlemen. 
Broader  comparisons  of  results,  however,  indicate  that  study  of 
such  special  instances  may  be  misleading.  It  has  been  shown  that, 
in  general,  a  poultry  business  is  limited  to  what  one  man  can 
manage  with  the  (usually)  very  limited  help  he  can  rely  upon. 
When  a  man  conducting  such  a  business  undertakes  to  sell  direct 
to  consumers,  he  often  finds  that  it  costs  him  more  to  sell  his 
produce  than  it  does  the  middlemen,  and  that  he  can  make  more 
money  by  giving  all  his  time  to  production  and  selling  his  products 
through  the  ordinary  channels,  —  he,  of  course,  taking  every  advan- 
tage that  he  can  without  himself  retailing  his  goods.  A  poultry 
keeper  whose  opportunities  or  facilities  for  production  are  limited 
may  find  it  to  his  advantage,  and  perhaps  necessary,  to  sell  his 
produce  direct  to  consumers,  but  one  who  is  in  a  position  to  extend 
productive  operations  to  the  limit  of  his  ability  to  handle  them  will 
almost  invariably  make  more  money  by  giving  as  much  as  possible 
of  his  time  to  production  and  intrusting  the  selling  of  his  produce 
to  reliable  persons  whose  specialty  is  selling.  This  is  a  natural 
division  of  labor  brought  about  by  the  conditions  of  production 
and  distribution  and  by  differences  in  men.  The  best  producers 
of  poultry  are  rarely  good  salesmen.  In  the  most  thriving  poul- 
try districts  producers  generally  devote  themselves  to  production, 

329 


330  POULTRY  CULTURE 

selling  their  produce  at  wholesale,  not  even  dressing  their  poultry. 
As  a  matter  of  historical  fact  the  men  buying  and  shipping  the 
poultry  of  a  district  are  the  most  important  factors  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  poultry  interests  of  that  district.1 

Collection  and  distribution  of  poultry  products.  The  trade  in 
poultry  products  proceeds  along  lines  generally  parallel  to  and 
sometimes  coincident  with  the  movement  of  other  provisions. 

Eggs.  A  poultry  keeper  producing  more  eggs  than  his  family 
can  consume  naturally  looks  in  his  vicinity  first  for  an  outlet  for 
his  surplus.  If  he  is  in  a  community  where  a  considerable  propor- 
tion of  families  do  not  keep  poultry,  he  may  easily  sell  all  that  he 
has  direct  to  consumers,  perhaps  getting  a  premium  for  his  eggs 
as  strictly  fresh.  If  the  eggs  are  sold  at  the  door,  or  if  the  producer 
can  deliver  them  without  devoting  an  appreciable  amount  of  time 
especially  to  it,  the  cost  of  delivery  need  not  be  considered.  The 
quantity  of  eggs  which  can  be  disposed  of  to  consumers  in  this 
way  is  usually  very  limited.  Larger  quantities  may  be  disposed  of 
direct  to  retailers,  or  to  hotel,  restaurant,  and  soda-fountain  trade,  at 
correspondingly  high  prices  and  with  little  expense  for  delivery, 
though  the  trade  of  this  class  is  not  as  large  as  is  usually  supposed, 
these  places  generally  using  much  larger  quantities  of  candled  than 
of  strictly  fresh  eggs. 

When  a  community  produces  a  surplus  of  eggs,  only  those 
poultry  keepers  producing  in  such  quantities  that  they  can  make 

1  This  is  true  both  as  to  the  industry  at  large  and  as  to  special  branches  in 
limited  districts.  Poultry  packers  throughout  the  West  have  for  years  worked 
systematically  to  induce  and  help  farmers  to  improve  their  poultry.  They  have 
made  it  a  practice  to  select  the  finest  market-type  cockerels  from  the  poultry 
brought  to  them  and  to  sell  these  to  persons  bringing  them  poor  poultry.  They 
have  even  bought  thoroughbred  cockerels  of  good  utility  types  and  exchanged 
with  farmers  on  the  basis  of  prices  paid  them  for  ordinary  stock.  For  years  some 
large  packing  plants  made  a  practice  of  advertising,  a  week  in  advance,  the  prices 
that  they  would  pay  for  poultry,  thus  insuring  the  seller  against  a  fall  in  prices  while 
his  stock  was  en  route.  On  a  smaller  scale  the  same  thing  was  done  by  buyers  in 
the  South  Shore  district  of  Massachusetts.  The  buyers  there  not  only  distributed 
good  breeding  males  but  in  every  way  endeavored  to  aid  the  producers  to  make  a 
first-class  product  and  to  dispose  of  it  to  the  best  advantage,  paying  at  their  doors 
the  highest  price  that  they  could  give  for  poultry,  not  the  lowest  that  the  producer 
could  be  persuaded  or  forced  to  take.  Under  such  circumstances  the  producer 
could  give  all  his  attention  to  making  the  product,  knowing  that  as  fast  as  it  was 
ready  for  market,  the  buyer  would  take  it  off  his  hands,  and  his  final  profits  would 
be  much  larger  than  if  he  had  sold  to  consumers  direct. 


MARKETING  POULTRY  PRODUCTS       331 

frequent  periodic  shipments  in  case  lots  can,  as  a  rule,  afford  to  ship 
their  own  eggs.1  In  'such  circumstances  it  becomes  necessary  that 
some  should  collect  and  ship  the  eggs  of  others.  The  collector 
may  be  himself  a  producer ;  this  is  most  likely  to  be  the  case  in 
communities  within  easy  shipping  distance  of  a  large  market.  At 
other  points  the  volume  of  poultry  products  to  be  handled  usually 
determines  whether  the  collector  will  handle  poultry  products  ex- 
clusively or  with  other  lines  of  produce.  If  the  poultry  production 
of  the  community  is  small,  the  eggs  are  likely  to  be  taken  in  bulk 
at  the  grocery  or  general  store,  packed  in  cases,  and  sent  either 
direct  to  a  large  receiving  center  or  to  an  egg  and  poultry  packer 
at  a  nearer  point.  If  the  community  produces  enough  surplus  poul- 
try products  to  maintain  a  depot  for  collecting  them,  it  will  have 
one  or  more  concerns  engaged  exclusively  in  buying,  preparing,  and 
shipping  poultry  products,  or  in  handling  these  with  such  lines  as 
butter  and  cheese,  —  sometimes  one,  sometimes  another  line  being 
of  first  importance.  Many  creameries  handle  eggs  as  well  as  milk. 
These  various  agencies  handling  eggs  sometimes  collect  and  some- 
times are  simply  receivers,  that  being  determined  by  local  custom 
or  by  individual  interest. 

Most  of  the  eggs  gathered  in  this  way  go  into  the  general  mar- 
ket through  commission  houses  in  the  large  cities,  but  large  pack- 
ing houses  also  handle  enormous  quantities.  Eggs  going  to  the 
commission  houses  are  sold  direct  to  large  consumers,  hotels,  res- 
taurants, and  bakeries,  to  retailers,  and  also  to  jobbers,  who  in  turn 
sell  to  retailers.  Thus,  between  the  time  when  it  is  laid,  on  a  west- 
ern or  southern  farm,  and  the  time  when  it  comes  to  the  table  in 
an  eastern  city  home,  an  egg  may  have  a  history  as  follows  :  ( I )  sold 
to  country  store ;  (2)  shipped  to  nearest  egg  depot ;  (3)  sent  to 
city  commission  house  ;  (4)  sold  to  jobber ;  (5)  sold  to  retailer ; 
(6)  bought  by  consumer  ;  and  in  going  from  the  farm  to  the  table  it 
may  travel  several  thousand  miles,  now  by  wagon,  now  by  rail,  and 
be  subjected  to  many  handlings  and  one  or  two  candlings  before 
it  reaches  the  end  of  its  journey.  If  it  goes  into  cold  storage,  or 
if  a  glut  in  one  market  leads  to  its  being  shipped  to  another,  the 
number  of  transfers  may  be  still  greater. 

1  Exceptions  are  instances  where  a  small  producer  can  develop  a  small  family 
trade  in  a  near-by  city. 


332 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


To  the  producer  (and  to  the  consumer  also)  it  often  seems  that 
too  much  of  the  difference  between  the  first  and  last  selling  prices 
goes  to  middlemen  and  transportation  companies,  but  taken  by 
and  large  the  system  is  adapted  to  the  conditions  and  is  here 
relatively  simple,  there  more  complex,  because  of  the  influence  of 
distance  and  of  the  facilities  for  collection,  transportation,  and 
distribution  on  the  laws  of  supply  and  demand. 

As  a  rule,  the  movement  of  supplies  from  producer  to  consumer 
is  as  direct  as  conditions  permit,  and  current  prices  at  any  point 
are  based  on  the  cost  of  the  general  supply  at  that  point.  In  a 
community  where  a  surplus  of  eggs  and  poultry  is  produced,  the 
consumer  gets  a  considerable  part,  if  not  all,  of  the  advantage  of 
nearness  to  sources  of  large  supply.  In  or  near  a  community  which 
buys  most  of  its  poultry  products  at  a  distance,  the  producer  should 
get  by  far  the  larger  proportion  of  the  last  selling  price  of  his  product. 
In  either  case  the  situation  is  exceptional,  and  the  advantage  is  de- 
pendent upon  that  fact.  Where  the  supply  of  the  near-by  product 
is  comparatively  small,  and  supplies  from  a  distance  are  of  uncertain 
quantity,  the  average  quality  of  the  near-by  product  will  be  enough 
better  to  make  it  at  nearly  all  times  worth  more  than  all  but  the 
finest  lots  of  produce  from  a  distance.  In  addition  there  is  always, 
in  such  communities,  a  proportion  of  consumers  willing  to  pay  a 
premium  for  near-by  produce  of  guaranteed  quality,  and  a  much 
smaller  proportion  that  will  pay  a  very  large  premium  for  strictly 
fresh  poultry  products,  especially  for  eggs  direct  from  the  producer. 
The  poultry  keeper  located  where  he  can  get  this  trade  must  figure 
the  expense  of  catering  to  it,  not  in  comparison  with  ordinary 
market  prices,  but  in  comparison  with  the  best  wholesale  prices 
that  he  can  get  for  the  same  class  of  goods.  As  a  rule,  it  will  be 
found  that  the  private  trade  is  more  profitable  only  when  it  is  pos- 
sible to  secure  customers  buying  both  eggs  and  poultry  regularly 
in  considerable  quantities,  and  that  selling  to  large  retail  groceries 
is  the  most  satisfactory  way  of  disposing  of  choice  eggs  in  large 
quantities.  There  are,  however,  so  many  places,  particularly  pleas- 
ure resorts,  where  a  poultry  keeper  conveniently  located  can  get 
extra  prices  for  his  produce  for  a  long  season  each  year,  that  be- 
fore going  to  this  class  of  stores  he  should  thoroughly  canvass 
his  opportunities  for  selling  direct. 


MARKETING  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  333 

Live  poultry  is  assembled  for  market  in  almost  the  same  way  as 
eggs.  The  necessity  for  promptly  forwarding  it  to  the  point  where 
it  is  to  be  converted  into  dressed  poultry  tends  to  reduce  the  num- 
ber of  persons  handling  it  in  the  stages  of  collection.  In  distribu- 
tion, too,  there  is  some  difference.  Live  poultry  is  retailed  almost 
wholly,  and  dressed  poultry  principally,  by  meat  markets,  while 
the  grocery  stores  handle  much  larger  quantities  of  eggs  than  the 
markets.  Thus  poultry  moves  in  narrower  channels  of  trade  than 
eggs.  In  districts  shipping  large  quantities  of  poultry  to  distant 
markets,  the  poultry  is  likely  to  be  delivered  by  producers  at  re- 
ceiving depots, — often  the  same  to  which  eggs  are  taken,  though  in 
many  places,  where  the  poultry-shipping  season  is  short,  the  depots 
do  not  handle  eggs.  Elsewhere  collections  are  more  likely  to  be 
made  by  carts  taking  only  poultry,  or  eggs  and  poultry,  according 
to  circumstances. 

The  greater  part  of  the  live  poultry  is  dressed  soon  after  leaving 
the  producer,  but  large  quantities  are  shipped  alive  to  distributing 
points  and  even  sold  alive  to  retailers  and  consumers,  for  there 
is  a  large  element  of  buyers  that  either  want  to  see  their  poultry 
before  it  is  killed,  or  want  it  killed  in  a  particular  way.  In  some 
places  it  is  customary  for  the  consumer  to  select  birds  from  a  coop 
of  live  poultry  at  the  butcher's,  and  have  them  killed  and  dressed 
especially  for  him,  sometimes  waiting  to  take  them  away  with  him. 
Wherever  there  is  a  large  Jewish  population  there  is  great  demand 
for  live  poultry.  Indeed,  this  demand  is  the  principal  factor  affect- 
ing the  live-poultry  market.  But  for  Jewish  ceremonial  require- 
ments the  shipping  of  live  poultry  farther  than  the  first  convenient 
killing  and  packing  house  would  probably  soon  cease. 

Dressed  poultry  is  received  at  poultry  depots  at  some  seasons, 
particularly  for  Thanksgiving  and  Christmas  trade,  but  is  not  col- 
lected as  live  poultry  and  eggs  are.  It  would  be  almost  impossible 
to  adjust  to  the  visits  of  the  "  hen  cart "  the  fasting,  killing,  and 
cooling  of  the  poultry  of  many  producers  along  a  route.  Poultry 
dressed  by  the  producer  is  (or  should  be)  sold  in  advance,  and  the 
preparation  and  shipping  timed  so  as  to  have  the  shipment  reach 
its  destination  just  when  wanted. 

Relative  advantages  of  selling  poultry  alive  and  dressed.  In  a 
district  where  the  aggregate  production  of  market  poultry  is  large, 


334 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


but  the  individual  production  comparatively  small,  it  will  usually  be 
to  the  advantage  of  a  poultry  keeper  to  sell  his  poultry  alive  to  per- 
sons making  a  specialty  of  preparing  it  for  market  and  selling  it, 
rather  than  to  undertake  to  dress  and  market  it  himself.  A  poultry 
keeper  anywhere  must  dress  his  own  poultry  for  a  private  trade  or 
for  small,  irregular  orders.  But  wherever  there  is  poultry  enough  to 
run  a  special  killing  plant,  such  a  plant,  in  the  hands  of  persons  who 
will  deal  fairly  with  the  producers,  can  dress  poultry  cheaper  and 
sell  it  better  than  the  producers  can,  and  make  more  money  for 
both  producer  and  dealer.  A  poultry  keeper  outside  of  the  area 
tributary  to  such  a  plant  will  usually  find  it  more  profitable  to  dress 
his  own  poultry,  provided  he  prepares  it  properly  and  has  it 
disposed  of  before  shipment.  Otherwise  he  may  get  no  more  for 
dressed  than  he  would  for  live  poultry.  If  the  poultry  arrives  in 
bad  condition  he  may  even  get  less,  and  besides,  he  has  had  the 
trouble  of  dressing  it.  There  are  times,  too,  —  mostly  at  Jewish 
holiday  seasons,  —  when  poultry  (particularly  fowls)  may  sell  for 
more  money  alive  than  dressed.  In  general,  the  small  producer 
can  dress  his  poultry  to  advantage  only  for  private  trade  and  when 
the  quality  is  choice.  Small,  odd  lots  and  inferior  birds  will  usually 
net  him  more  if  sold  alive  to  a  home  buyer  than  if  shipped  dressed 
to  a  distant  market.  Selling  at  home,  he  rarely  fails  to  get,  on  the 
spot,  all  that  the  stock  is  worth,  and  he  has  no  further  risks  in  con- 
nection with  it.  A  great  deal  of  misunderstanding  in  regard  to 
this  point  comes  from  comparisons  of  prices  for  unassorted,  ordi- 
nary, or  inferior  stock  at  the  producing  point  with  prices  of  the  best 
stock  in  a  distant  retail  market.  Such  comparisons,  when  fairly 
made,  are  serviceable,  showing  the  advantage  of  producing  good 
poultry  and  marketing  it  in  first-class  condition.  As  statements  of 
conditions,  with  the  inference  that  the  producer  selling  his  birds  alive 
loses  the  greater  part  of  the  difference  between  the  price  that  he 
received  and  the  price  that  the  consumer  paid,  they  are  misleading. 
Feathers.  Buyers  of  poultry  sometimes  collect  feathers,  but  in 
many  places  there  is  no  local  buyer.  In  that  case  the  best  way  to 
dispose  of  them  is  to  get  the  addresses  of  feather  buyers  from 
provision-trade  papers  and  communicate  with  them  in  regard  to 
prices  and  instructions  for  shipping.  These  houses  will  buy  feathers 
of  all  kinds  and  in  any  quantity. 


MARKETING  POULTRY  PRODUCTS  335 

Manure.  Poultry  manure  was  long  salable  (at  high  prices)  for 
tanning  purposes,  but  the  use  of  chemicals  for  tanning  has  greatly 
reduced  the  demand  for  it.  In  some  places  men  still  make  a 
business  of  collecting  poultry  manure,  but  at  present  prices  it  is 
worth  more  for  fertilizer,  and  unless  methods  are  highly  intensive, 
it  is  more  valuable  to  the  poultry  keeper  for  that  purpose  than  for 
any  other.  When  manure  is  sold  for  fertilizing  purposes  the  price 
depends  altogether  on  the  buyer's  needs  and  on  his  appreciation 
of  its  value.  Poultrymen  who  use  it  on  land  consider  it  at  least  equal 
in  value  to  the  highest-priced  commercial  fertilizers  designed  for 
general  use. 

Cooperative  selling  of  poultry  products.  As  it  relates  to  poultry, 
cooperation  is  in  the  experimental  stage  in  America.  In  view  of 
the  nature  of  the  industry,  the  general  conditions  of  trade,  and 
the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  any  wide  cooperative  movement,  it 
must  be  regarded  as  highly  improbable  that  much  will  be  accom- 
plished in  this  direction  except  as  a  part  of  the  development  of 
cooperation  in  marketing  farm  products  of  all  kinds.  The  situa- 
tion with  respect  to  poultry,  a  crop  which,  produced  everywhere, 
is  being  harvested  all  the  year  round  and  yielding  quite  a  variety 
of  products  not  easily  preserved,. is  unlike  the  situation  in  handling 
fall  fruits  harvested  in  a  short  season  and  stored  for  months  with 
slight  deterioration,  shrinkage,  or  loss.  The  most  that  can  be  said 
of  the  most  advanced  coSperative  movements  in  'selling  poultry  is 
that  they  make  some  progress.  With  this  it  should  be  said  that 
nearly  all  cooperative  movements  in  this  line  everywhere  have  been 
subsidized  either  by  actual  government  grants  or  through  the  serv- 
ices, as  promoters,  of  persons  compensated  not  by  the  producers  but 
by  the  government  or  by  some  organization  with  educational  aims. 

A  large  degree  of  practical  cooperation  is  attained  in  some 
poultry-producing  communities,  —  notably  in  the  South  Shore  soft- 
roaster  district,  where,  it  should  be  noted,  the  crop  is  sold  within 
a  short  season.  A  study  of  conditions  in  such  a  district  as  this 
shows  plainly  that  a  cooperative  selling  movement  will  be  most 
stable  when  it  develops  as  a  part  of  an  industry  largely  cooper- 
ative throughout.  In  this  case  there  is  no  formal  organization  or 
corporation.  The  transactions  between  producers  and  dealers  are 
on  the  same  basis  as  in  the  ordinary  course  of  trade,  but  the 


336  POULTRY  CULTURE 

producers,  though  independent,  are  all  engaged  in  "  making"  the 
same  line  of  goods  and  in  trying  to  make  their  product  of  uni- 
formly high  quality ;  and  the  middleman,  dealing  fairly  by  them, 
increases  his  own  profits,  not  by  taking  from  the  producer  as  large 
a  proportion  of  the^price  as  possible,  but  by  making  a  fair  division 
of  profits  and  thus  encouraging  the  extension  of  the  industry  and 
enlarging  the  volume  of  his  own  trade. 

Uniformity  of  product  is  the  basis  of  cooperative  selling.  Lack- 
ing this,  no  cooperative  movement  can  be  self-sustaining.  With 
uniformity  of  product  and  a  sufficient  volume  of  it,  there  comes  a 
strong  tendency  toward  practical  cooperation  in  selling,  which  gives 
the  producer  all  the  advantages  that  he  would  gain  by  a  purely 
cooperative  system  of  disposing  of  products.  Given  conditions 
favorable  to  such  cooperation,  the  form  of  the  selling  system  is 
of  less  importance  than  the  spirit  of  the  parties  interested.  The 
case  mentioned  was  selected  as  most  strikingly  typical.  Something 
of  the  same  conditions  may  be  found  wherever  a  particular  branch 
of  poultry  culture  is  followed  by  many  persons  in  a  community. 


CHAPTER  XX 

PREVENTION   AND  TREATMENT  OF  DISEASE  AND  VICE 

Hygiene  and  sanitation.  Hygiene  and  sanitation  are  closely 
related  topics,  practically  inseparable  in  a  treatise  of  this  kind. 
Hygiene  relates  more  particularly  to  health  and  the  preservation  of 
health  in  creatures  ;  sanitation  relates  more  particularly  to  the  main- 
tenance of  healthful  conditions  of  environment.  As  the  principal 
phases  of  these  topics  in  their  relation  to  poultry  have  been  dis- 
cussed incidentally  in  preceding  chapters,  we  need  here  introduce 
only  a  brief  discussion  of  the  common  ills  and  faults  of  poultry. 

The  general  observance  of  rules  of  hygiene  and  sanitation  is  of 
vastly  greater  importance,  both  to  the  poultry  keeper  individually 
and  in  its  effect  on  general  conditions  in  poultry  culture,  than  spe- 
cific knowledge  of  the  causes,  symptoms,  and  treatments  of  dis- 
eases, for  attention  to  hygienic  and  sanitary  conditions  is  a  general 
preventive  and  salutary  measure  by  which  we  not  only  ward  off 
disease  but  remedy  most  of  the  diseases  which  may  be  profitably 
treated,  and  keep  stock  in  the  most  profitable  physical  condition. 
Correct  hygiene  and  sanitation  are  a  part  of  good  practice  in  poultry 
keeping.  Special  consideration  and  treatment  of  diseases  become 
necessary  only  when  conditions  are  wrong  or  when  practice  is  at 
fault.  Individual  treatment  is  usually  not  profitable  because  of  the 
small  value  of  the  birds.  In  general,  a  knowledge  of  poultry  diseases 
is  directly  useful  to  poultrymen  only  for  the  determination  and 
correction  of  wrong  conditions  of  hygiene  and  sanitation. 

Indications  of  disease  or  of  a  low  physical  condition  are,  to 
those  who  can  apprehend  them,  unmistakable  signs  of  weakness 
in  the  stock,  or  improper  conditions  or  errors  in  handling.  Gen- 
eral symptoms  show  that  there  is  something  wrong.  Just  what  is 
wrong  is  not  likely  to  be  evident  from  symptoms  except  in  cases 
where  a  symptom  is  peculiar  to  a  disease  or  to  a  small  group  of 
similar  disorders.  When  no  special  symptoms  can  be  detected,  the 
disease  can  rarely  be  positively  identified,  and  we  have  to  turn 

337 


338  POULTRY  CULTURE 

from  the  observation  of  symptoms  to  the  investigation  of  condi- 
tions, examine  systematically  into  matters  of  hygiene  and  sanita- 
tion, mark  every  wrong  condition  as  a  possible  cause  of  trouble, 
and  correct  that  condition,  whether  the  trouble  can  be  directly 
connected  with  it  or  not. 

Causes  of  disease.  The  causes  of  disease  are  (i)  constitutional 
(arising  from  defects  of  the  organism)  ;  (2)  dietetic  (caused  by 
improper  food  and  feeding) ;  (3)  environmental  (due  to  improper 
surroundings) ;  (4)  contagious  (communicated  by  contact).  It  is  not 
necessary  to  discuss  these  exhaustively.  Only  a  few  of  the  more 
important  of  each  class  need  be  mentioned.  Causes  of  disease  are 
not  always  clearly  referable  to  one  of  these  classes.  A  single  cause 
acting  independently  rarely  produces  disease,  but  it  may  open  the 
way  for  the  operation  of  other  causes.  In  such  a  case  it  may  not 
be  clear  which  is  the  primary  cause,  but  that  point  is  immaterial. 

Constitutional  causes  of  disease.  Defects  of  the  organism  are 
of  two  kinds  :  congenital  (or  inherited)  and  functional  (or  spon- 
taneous). A  creature  may  have  a  constitution  generally  weak  or 
defective  in  some  respect  because  one  or  more  of  its  ancestors 
had.  As  a  rule,  it  will  not  have  a  sound  constitution  unless  its 
immediate  parents  have  sound  constitutions.  No  matter  how  good 
the  constitution  may  have  been  originally,  it  may  be  impaired,  either 
at  some  point  or  as  a  whole,  by  accident,  or  by  overworking  an 
organ,  or  through  any  external  disease-producing  cause,  and  never 
regain  its  full  tone  though  the  conditions  which  caused  the  trouble 
are  removed  and  a  decided  improvement  follows.  In  such  cases 
the  functional  weakness  continues  as  a  latent  condition  favorable 
to  the  operation  of  the  causes  of  disease.  The  most  prevalent 
constitutional  cause  of  disease  is  debility,  or  low  vitality,  increasing 
from  generation  to  generation  in  stocks  kept  under  highly  arti- 
ficial conditions. 

Dietetic  causes  of  disease.  Poor  quality  of  food,  ill-balanced 
rations,  overfeeding,  underfeeding,  and  irregular  feeding  are  the 
principal  dietetic  causes  of  disease.  As  was  shown  in  discussing 
the  relations  of  methods  of  feeding  to  other  factors  in  the  manage- 
ment of  poultry,  the  same  ration  may  be,  under  some  conditions, 
good,  under  others,  bad ;  suitable  for  one  bird,  not  suitable  for  an- 
other ;  useful  for  a  special  purpose  or  up  to  a  certain  point,  as  in 


PREVENTION  AND  TREATMENT  OF  DISEASE      339 

fattening,  but  dangerous  if  too  long  continued.  Poisons  also  are  in 
this  class  of  causes  of  diseases. 

Enviromental  causes  of  disease.  Errors  in  locating  poultry  houses 
and  yards,  faults  in  construction  and  regulation  of  poultry  houses, 
unsanitary  conditions  in  houses  and  yards,  errors  in  incubation  and 
brooding,  disturbances  affecting  comfort  and  regularity  of  life  (such 
as  rough  treatment  by  attendants  and  fright  by  passing  persons  or 
animals),  are  the  common  environmental  causes  of  disease  in  poultry. 

Contagious  diseases.  Epidemics,  as  a  rule,  make  little  trouble 
among  healthy  flocks  kept  under  good  sanitary  conditions.  Some 
of  the  most  virulent  (as  cholera,  fowl  typhoid,  and  bacterial  enter- 
itis) sometimes  seem  to  be  equally  dangerous  to  all  kinds  of  stock 
under  all  conditions,  but  in  view  of  the  general  absence  of  con- 
tagious diseases  from  plants  where  conditions  are  good,  and  of 
the  efficacy  of  proper  attention  to  hygiene  and  sanitation  in  stamp- 
ing out  contagion,  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether  even  the  germs 
of  such  contagious  diseases  are  dangerous  to  poultry  that  are  sound 
in  constitution  and  living  in  proper  surroundings.  When  epidemics 
of  roup  and  enteritis  break  out,  they  are  usually  attributed  to  con- 
tagion, but  contagion  seems  to  be  effective  only  when  other  causes 
prepare  the  way  for  it.  Scaly  leg  and  various  skin  diseases  are 
plainly  transmitted  in  some  cases,  yet  in  nearly  all  affected  flocks 
some  individuals  are  immune. 

Symptoms  of  disease.  Indications  of  disease  are  general  (com- 
mon to  many  diseases)  and  special  (peculiar  to  certain  diseases). 

General  symptoms  of  disease  are  of  much  more  importance  to 
the  poultry  keeper  than  are  special  symptoms,  except  in  cases  where 
the  special  symptom  appears  at  first  or  at  any  early  stage  and  is 
plainly  marked,  —  as  in  skin  diseas.es  and  in  some  throat  and  lung 
troubles.  General  symptoms  are  negative  rather  than  positive,  in- 
dicating lack  of  health,  or  of  perfect  health,  rather  than  the  pres- 
ence of  any  specific  disease.  As  control  of  disease  depends  largely 
upon  detecting  it  in  the  first  stages  and  promptly  using  corrective 
measures,  it  is  of  much  more  importance  that  the  poultry  keeper 
should  have  a  keen  appreciation  of  the  signs  of  health,  and  be 
quick  to  observe  any  failing  in  them,  than  that  he  should  know 
the  pronounced  symptoms  of  diseases,  for  in  a  large  proportion  of 
cases  a  disease  cannot  be  identified  by  symptoms  until  it  is  so  far 


340 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


advanced  that  treatment  is  useless  or  unprofitable.  The  general 
symptoms  most  readily  marked  are  weakness  and  inactivity,  a 
drooping  attitude,  and  a  dull  color  and  dull  expression  of  the  head. 
Diarrhea  is  present  in  many  cases. 

Special  symptoms  plain  to  ordinary  observation  are  head  and 
foot  symptoms,  and  irregularities  in  the  actions  and  in  the  dis- 
charges of  the  birds.  When  proper  allowance  is  made  for  paleness 
associated  with  inactivity  of  the  organs  of  reproduction,  the  color  of 
the  comb  is  a  fairly  reliable  index  of  health.  A  yellowish  comb  indi- 
cates biliousness  ;  a  pale  comb  is  the  sign  of  an  anemic  condition, 
and  suggests  examination  for  symptoms  of  enteritis  or  tuberculosis, 
or  for  lice  ;  a  dark  comb  indicates  a  plethoric  condition,  defective  cir- 
culation, and  sometimes  congestion,  as  in  bronchitis  or  pneumonia. 
Yellow  warts  on  the  face  and  comb  occur  in  chicken  pox.  Yellow- 
ish-white, cheesy  lumps  about  the  eyes,  nostrils,  and  corners  of  the 
mouth  are  more  likely  to  indicate  roupy  catarrh.  A  watery  dis- 
charge from  the  nostrils  may  be  nothing  more  serious  than  a  com- 
mon cold.  Neglected,  such  a  cold  may  develop  into  roup,  with 
thicker  discharge  and  perhaps  accumulations  of  cheesy  matter. 
White  or  grayish  patches  inside  the  mouth,  especially  when  the 
odor  is  very  offensive,  indicate  diphtheritic  roup.  Head  symptoms 
are  particularly  important,  because  so  many  of  them  have  more  than 
local  significance.  Foot  symptoms  are  direct  symptoms  of  local 
trouble,  such  as  scaly  leg,  corns,  and  bumblefoot.  To  the  lay  ob- 
server vent  discharges  are  very  unreliable  symptoms,  hardly  to  be 
classed  as  special  symptoms  for  him,  though  to  a  veterinary  they 
may  be  very  useful. 

General  treatment  of  disease.  The  practical  and  profitable  way 
for  a  poultry  keeper  to  treat  disease  in  his  flocks  is  by  general 
salutary  measures ;  birds  too  far  gone  to  respond  to  these  are 
rarely  worth  saving.  Such  local  troubles  as  scaly  leg,  injuries  like 
frostbite,  and  combs  damaged  in  fighting,  may  be  given  attention 
in  the  case  of  individual  birds  that  are  particularly  valuable,  but  for 
the  great  majority  of  such  cases  the  best  thing  to  do  is  to  remove 
the  cause  —  or  the  bird  from  the  cause  —  and  let  nature  work  re- 
covery. It  is  possible  to  cure  a  large  proportion  even  of  very  serious 
cases  of  sickness  in  poultry  by  giving  good  nursing  with  suitable 
medicinal  treatment,  —  the  nursing  being  the  more  important ;  but 


PREVENTION  AND  TREATMENT  OF 'DISEASE      341 

it  usually  costs  more  than  the  birds  are  worth,  besides  monopolizing 
time  and  attention  that  should  be  given  (then,  more  than  at  any 
other  time)  to  careful  consideration  of  general  conditions  in  the  flock, 
and  to  the  adoption  of  salutary  measures  applying  to  the  whole 
flock.  An  occasional  case  of  disease  has  no  general  significance, 
but  anything  resembling  an  epidemic  shows  that  some  of  the  gen- 
eral causes  of  disease  are  operative.  Disease  on  such  a  scale  is  the 
penalty  for  mistakes,  and  especially. for  neglect  to  keep  up  the  con- 
stitutional vitality  of  the  stock  and  to  maintain  right  hygienic  and 
sanitary  conditions.  No  amount  of  doctoring,  however  effective  at 
the  time,  will  give  permanent  relief.  The  only  advantage  that  a 
poultryman  has  in  knowing  diseases  is  that  he  knows  the  causes, 
and  is  thus  able  to  follow  the  old  medical  maxim,  "  Remove  the 
cause  and  the  effects  will  cease."  It  is  a  matter  of  common  remark 
among  poultrymen  that  the  more  one  doctors,  the  more  he  will 
have  to  doctor. 

Injuries.  Accidents  cannot  be  wholly  avoided,  but  damage  from 
such  causes  is  insignificant.  Injuries  due  to  environmental  causes 
must  be  prevented  by  dealing  with  those  causes  as  with  causes  of 
disease.  One  of  the  most  important  of  these  is  crooked  breastbone 
in  fowls.  Thousands  of  cases  of  this  are  developed  by  allowing 
young  chicks  to  roost  (by  day,  usually)  on  narrow-edged  boards, 
on  the  edges  of  boxes  and  barrels,  and  in  like  places.  This  is  not 
the  sole  cause  of  crooked  breasts,  but  is  a  common  cause  which  is 
easily  avoided.  Another  very  common  injury  is  frostbite  of  combs 
and  wattles.  This  is  best  avoided  by  keeping  fowls  that  are  adapted 
to  the  climate,  but  much  can  be  done  in  the  way  of  prevention  by 
accustoming  the  birds  to  low  temperature,  by  giving  dry  feed  only 
in  zero  weather,  and  by  giving  snow  or  finely  cracked  ice  instead 
of  water  when  it  is  so  cold  that  water  freezes  quickly.  Warm 
water  should  not  be  given. 

Internal  parasites.  Worms  are  the  most  troublesome  internal 
parasites  of  poultry.  The  gapeworm  infests  the  windpipe.  It  is 
dangerous  only  to  young  chickens.  Tapeworms  and  roundworms 
of  many  varieties  infest  all  kinds  of  poultry,  being  found  mostly 
in  the  intestines  and  digestive  organs.  When  present  in  small 
numbers  they  do  little  damage  to  strong,  robust  birds,  and  do  not 
often  multiply  dangerously  when  sanitary  conditions  are  good. 


342 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


When  a  stock  of  poultry  becomes  badly  infested  with  worms,  the 
numbers  of  the  parasites  which  may  simultaneously  attack  a  strong 
bird  may  be  so  great  that  its  strength  is  of  little  advantage.  In 
such  cases  it  is  advisable  to  kill  off  all  stock  and  keep  no  poultry 
on  the  land  for  several  years.  Stock  from  a  badly  infected  flock, 
if  taken  to  new  land,  carries  the  worms  with  it. 

External  parasites.  Lice  are  often  referred  to  as  enemies  against 
which  the  poultry  keeper  must  wage  unremitting  warfare.  This 
view  exaggerates  the  importance  of  direct  personal  efforts  to  keep 
these  parasites  in  subjection.  There  are  two  general  classes  of  lice, 
—  those  which  live  upon  the  birds  and  those  which  only  feed  upon 
them,  remaining  at  other  times  in  crevices  about  the  roosts  and 
nests.  Neither  kind  does  perceptible  damage  when  present  in 
small  numbers,  or  multiplies  too  rapidly  on  adult  birds  when  sani- 
tary conditions  are  good,  when  the  birds  are  vigorous,  and  when 
ample  opportunity  is  given  them  to  "  dust  "  themselves.  Some  live 
on  dead  skin  and  feather  particles.  Very  few  birds  are  absolutely 
free  from  lice,  even  when  treated  regularly  with  insecticides. 

The  presence  of  lice  in  small  numbers  on' the  bodies  of  poultry 
is  by  some  authorities  considered  beneficial.  They  rarely  become 
seriously  detrimental  to  any  strong  stock  kept  under  favorable  con- 
ditions. Treatment  for  them  should  be  necessary  only  on  incubat- 
ing poultry,  on  young  birds  when  very  small,  and  on  old  ones  when 
confined  without  opportunity  to  free  themselves  from  lice.  Con- 
tinued necessity  for  fighting  lice  shows  plainly  that  some  other  con- 
dition needs  attention.  It  may  be  the  vitality  of  the  stock  ;  it  may 
be  the  sanitary  conditions  ;  it  may  be  that,  once  allowed  to  establish 
themselves,  the  lice,  though  constantly  fought,  have  never  been 
effectively  treated  (this  is  the  case  especially  with  red  mites,  which 
secrete  themselves  about  the  roosts).  For  lice  on  poultry,  dry  insec- 
ticides (powdered)  are  used ;  for  lice  about  roosts,  nests,  and 
buildings,  liquid  insecticides  are  applied  freely  to  infested  places. 

Vices.  The  bad  habits  of  poultry  are  developed  almost  wholly  in 
close  confinement  under  unsatisfactory  conditions.  Feather  eating, 
egg  eating,  and  various  forms  of  cannibalism  common  among 
closely  confined  poultry  are  rarely  seen  among  poultry  at  liberty 
amid  favorable  surroundings,  and  give  comparatively  little  trouble 
among  closely  confined  birds  if  the  conditions  are  sanitary  and  the 


PREVENTION  AND  TREATMENT  OF  VICE          343 

birds  have  something  to  occupy  their  attention.  Feeding  in  littered 
floors,  supplying  dry  ground  grains  in  hoppers,  and  giving  cabbages, 
mangels,  and  dried  meat  and  fish,  all  help  to  prevent  vices  by  giving 
the  birds  something  to  do  and  to  think  about.  Vices  once  started 
spread  rapidly.  The  only  effective  way  to  suppress  them  is  by  im- 
proving the  conditions.  Sometimes  a  change  of  quarters  and  the 
removal  of  the  worst  offenders  will  stop  a  bad  habit  not  too  firmly 
established.  The  reliable  cure  is  right  conditions  and  (if  necessary) 
special  attention  to  keeping  the  birds  busy  until  they  forget  the 
objectionable  practice. 


PART   III.    REPRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  XXI 

TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES   OF  FOWLS 

Original  type  of  the  domestic  fowl.  The  only  known  wild 
birds  of  the  same  species  as  the  domestic  fowl  are  the  little  jungle 
fowls  of  India  and  Ceylon.  One  of  these,  the  Callus  Bankiva,  is 
by  many  considered  the  ancestor  of  all  the  numerous  and  diverse 
races  of  fowls.  This  view  .rests  more  on  argument  than  on  evi- 
dence, and  the  argument  is  far  from  conclusive.  The  strongest 
points  in  its  favor  are  that  the  jungle  fowls  are  the  only  known 
wild  birds  of  the  species,  and  that  the  Callus  Bankiva  closely 
resembles  the  domestic  Black- Red  Game  Bantam.  There  is  very 
little  accurate  knowledge  of  the  jungle  fowls.  Considering  the 
difficulty  of  getting  full  information  in  regard  to  matters  more 
recent  than  the  first  domestication  of  fowls  and  more  ascertainable 
than  the  facts  as  to  the  modern  jungle  fowls,  the  conclusions  of 
naturalists  and  the  rather  casual  observations  of  fanciers  and  others 
on  this  point,  together  with  the  few  far  from  satisfactory  experi- 
ments made  in  India  with  jungle  and  domestic  fowls  and  their 
crosses,  carry  little  weight  with  the  careful  student  of  poultry  cul- 
ture. On  either  economic  or  evolutionary  grounds  it  is  much  more 
reasonable  to  assume  that  the  domestic  and  the  jungle  fowls  are 
descended  from  a  common  ancestor,  probably  intermediate  in  size 
between  jungle  fowls  and  ordinary  unimproved  domestic  stock. 
Unlike  the  wild  ancestors  of  the  duck,  goose,  and  turkey,  the  little 
jungle  fowl  is  not  economically  attractive  to  man  and  does  not 
readily  adapt  itself  to  domestication  or  quickly  improve  in  economic 
qualities  under  domestic  conditions.  It  seems  to  be  an  established 
fact  that,  in  the  countries  that  they  inhabit,  the  male  jungle  fowls 
in  freedom  breed  readily  with  domestic  hens  wandering  from  the  vil- 
lages. The  female  jungle  fowl  is  naturally  less  bold  in  approaching 

344 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       345 

human  habitations,  and  even  should  connections  with  domestic  cocks 
occur,  the  results  would  not  be  so  readily  observed.  In  captivity 
jungle  fowls  of  both  sexes  are  shy  breeders,  the  females  especially 
so  ;  but  to  a  poultry  breeder  familiar  with  many  instances  of  the 
effects  of  changes  in  location,  diet,  and  habits  of  life  on  fertility 
conclusions  on  this  point  drawn  from  wild  birds  in  captivity  and 
from  their  immediate  descendants  have  little  significance. 

Economically  the  presumption  is  that  with  fowls,  as  with  other 
poultry,  the  wild  type  as  first  brought  into  domestication  was  in 
itself  desirable,  and  that  some,  perhaps  the  greater  number,  of  the 
wild  stock  were  of  docile  disposition.  The  desirability  of  such 
individuals  would  quickly  lead  to  their  domestication  or  extermina- 
tion. The  smallest  and  wildest  specimens  of  the  race  would  escape 
capture,  or  perhaps  return  to  wild  life  to  avoid  man  more  carefully 
than  before.  Because  of  their  lack  of  economic  value  he  would 
refrain  from  pursuing  these,  but  the  larger  or  more  venturesome 
would  be  constantly  exposed  to  his  attacks.  The  inevitable  results 
of  such  conditions  in  a  favorable  environment  would  be  the  de- 
velopment of  a  race  of  fowls  less  valuable  and  less  adapted  to 
domestication  than  the.  original  type. 

Considering  the  case  from  the  economic  point  of  view,  there  is 
little  reason  to  suppose  that  primitive  man  domesticated  such  a 
fowl  as  the  jungle  fowl  of  to-day.  The  antiquity  and  wide  distribu- 
tion of  game  types  have  led  some  to  infer  that  fowls  were  first 
domesticated  for  the  amusement  rather  than  for  the  use  of  man, 
but  the  domestication  of  fowls  evidently  occurred  centuries  earlier 
than  the  earliest  authentic  records  of  game  fowls.  Combining  the 
economic  and  evolutionist  points  of  view,  the  theory  that  the 
domestic  fowls  of  all  varieties,  and  the  jungle  fowls  as  well,  are 
descended  from  a  common  ancestor  becomes  much  more  plausi- 
ble than  the  commonly  accepted  theory.  On  this  theory,  and  con- 
sidering what  is  known  or  may  be  reasonably  inferred  in  regard 
to  the  differentiation  of  types  in  domestication,  the  original  type 
may  be  constructed  with  sufficient  accuracy  to  afford  an  initial  type 
from  which  all  the  others  have  been  developed.  Such  a  type  must 
be  assumed  at  the  outset,  and  the  value  of  the  assumption  demon- 
strated incidentally  in  the  course  of  the  presentation  of  the  his- 
tories and  descriptions  of  popular  types.  Hence  it  is  assumed  that 


346  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  original  type  of  domestic  fowl  was  a  bird  of  about  the  size 
of  the  partridge  or  the  pheasant ;  in  shape,  approaching  the  game 
type  yet  not  presenting  that  type  as  developed  with  pit  qualities  ; 
in  color,  of  the  black-red  or  brown-red  type  ;  with  small  single  comb 
and  no  superfluous  plumage. 

Birds  of  this  type  are  often  seen  in  mongrel  flocks  showing  no 
marked  traces  of  the  principal  improved  types.  The  general  shape 
and  size  of  small  mongrels  is  probably  much  the  same  as  that  of 
the  original  stock,  though  color  is  more  various.  Even  such  breeds 
as  the  Leghorns,  Hamburgs,  and  Polish  closely  resemble  this 
original,  except  in  color  and  superficial  features. 

Types  of  domestic  fowls.  The  number  of  varieties  of  fowls  is 
so  great,  and  the  development  of  characters  so  irregular,  that  it 
is  not  possible  to  make  a  simple  classification  in  which  the  place 
of  each  variety  is  readily  assigned.  A  simple  classification  requires 
that  the  grouping  of  classes  be  according  to  economic  characters, 
which  are  few  in  number  and  relatively  stable,  rather  than  accord- 
ing to  superficial  characters,  which  are  many  and  constantly 
changing.  Scientific  classification  must  be  consistent.  A  primary 
classification  on  a  geographical *  basis  is  obviously  absurd,  leading 
to  all  sorts  of  inconsistencies,  but  regular  differences  in  type  in 
different  countries  may  properly  be  indicated  in  secondary  divi- 
sions. With  further  subdivision  based  on  superficial  characters, 
a  classification  fundamentally  simple  and  consistent  will  include 
nearly  all  well-defined  types. 

This  plan  of  classification  gives  five  distinct  general  types  of 
fowls,  to  which  may  be  referred  all  but  two  varieties  with  plumage 
of  abnormal  structure,  for  which  a  sixth  class  is  made.  The  basis 
of  the  classification  being  economic,  the  common  economic  terms 

1  The  classification  adopted  by  the  American  Poultry  Association  for  the 
Standard  of  Perfection  is  geographic  (breeds  being  classified  according  to  the 
country  in  which  they  originated  or  from  which  they  were  introduced)  and 
patriotic  (American  breeds  being  given  first),  but  utterly  unscientific  and  tending 
to  confuse,  not  to  clarify,  conceptions  of  type.  In  such  classification,  homogeneity 
is  wholly  dependent  upon  chance.  In  some  cases  (as  in  the  American  class) 
the  class  is  homogeneous  because,  on  the  principle  adopted,  incomplete  ;  in 
others  (as  the  English  class)  there  is  no  homogeneity.  The  absurdity  of  such 
classification  becomes  plain  when  representatives  of  all  breeds  and  varieties 
are  arranged  according  to  it.  This  system  of  arrangement  is  rarely  used  a  second 
time  at  a  poultry  show. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       347 


descriptive  of  classes  of  fowls  are 
used  for  the  classes  to  which  they 
apply.  We  have,  then,  the  follow- 
ing general  types  of  fowls  :  (i)  game 
types,  (2)  laying  types,  (3)  meat 
types,  (4)  general-purpose  types, 
(5)  deformed  types,  (6)  bantams. 

Game  types.  While,  as  has  been 
said,  it  is  not  probable  that  fowls 
were  domesticated  for  the  sport  of 
fighting  the  cocks,  it  is  certain  that 
in  domestication  the  pugnacity  and 
gameness  of  the  cock  led  to  the 
early  development  of  a  fighting 
type,  possessed  of  great  courage, 

strength,   and  endurance,   of  very 
FIG.  T.2Q.  Aseel  Game  cock.  (Photo-  r  -,         r     .-,          •, 

graph  from  Dr.  H.P.Clarke,  Indian-    compact   form,   close-feathered  or 

apolis,  Indiana)  short-feathered,  with  no  superfluous 

appendages.     Ancient   records   of 

various  kinds  —  hieroglyphics,  coins,  vases  —  show  the  wide  dis- 
tribution of  this  type.  From  early  times  to  within  a  century, 
cockfighting  seems  to 
have  been  everywhere 
a  popular  pastime.  In 
modern  times  it  has  been 
outlawed  among  civi- 
lized and  humane  peo- 
ples. Though  not  yet 
wholly  suppressed,  even 
in  England  and  Amer- 
ica, public  sentiment  is 
so  strongly  against  it, 
the  risks  of  detection  are 
so  great,  and  the  pen- 
alties are  so  impartially 
applied,  that  even  the 


advocates   of  the   sport 
recognize  that   it   must 


FIG.  330.     Old    English    Game    cock.     (Photo- 
graph  from   owner,   W.  F.  Liedtke,    Meriden, 
Connecticut) 


348 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  331.    Cornish  Indian  Game  hen. 

Forest  City  Cornish  yards,  Shawnee, 

Oklahoma 


soon  cease  absolutely.  Whatever 
may  be  said  of  the  humanity  and 
morality  of  cockfighting,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  indirectly  the  results  of 
breeding  for  the  pit  were  beneficial 
to  poultry  culture,  the  requirements 
of  the  cockpit  compelling  an  atten- 
tion to  strength  and  vitality  too  often 
neglected  when  qualities  not  imme- 
diately dependent  upon  them  are 
sought.  As  would  be  expected  from 
the  attention  given  to  breeding  fight- 
ing fowls,  some  most  pronounced 
utility  types  are  plainly  derived 
through  modifications  of  this  type. 
After  the  prohibition  of  cockfight- 
ing  some  breeders  developed  an 


exaggerated  game  type  for  exhibi- 
tion. The  fighting  types  as  devel- 
oped in  different  countries  vary 
considerably.  Only  the  two  most  im- 
portant, the  Aseel  and  the  English 
Game,  need  be  considered  here. 
These,  with  the  Malay,  the  Cornish 
Indian  Game,  and  the  modern  Ex- 
hibition Game  constitute  the  game 
types  of  interest  to  the  student  of 
poultry  culture. 

The  Aseel  (or  Azeel),  "  the  true 
fighting  Game  of  India,"  is  a  small 
bird  very  strong  in  frame  and  so 
short  of  feather  that  the  plumage 
does  not  conceal  the  lines  of  the  form 
as  in  birds  with  longer  plumage.  It 
combines,  more  than  any  other  fowl, 
great  muscular  development  with 
strong  bone.  Aseels  are  of  various 
colors  and  have  pea  combs. 


FIG.  332.    Front  view  of  Cornish 

Indian  Game  cockerel.  Forest  City 

Cornish  yards 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       349 

The  English  Game,  by  some  now  called  Thoroughbred  Game, 
is  the  type  of  fighting  game  familiar  nearly  everywhere  among 
English-speaking  peoples.  It  is  a  larger  bird  than  the  Aseel  (the 
males  sometimes  weighing  6  and  7  pounds),  has  longer  plumage, 
and  abundant  tail  and  hackle  in  the  male,  and  is  a  more  symmetri- 
cal bird,  more  alert,  and  generally  more  attractive.  This  race  is  of 
many  colors,  black-reds 1  and  brown-reds  being  most  abundant. 
Some  stocks  have  been  bred  to  a  fixed  color  pattern,  others  have 


FIG.  333.    Three-quarters  rear  view  of      FIG.  334.    Three-quarters  front- view  of 
bird  in  Fig.  332  bird  in  Fig.  332  2 

not.  The  comb  is  small  and  single.  But  for  the  pugnacity  of  the 
males,  which  develops  at  a  surprisingly  early  age,  they  make  very 
good  fowls  for  either  a  farm  or  family  flock,  —  not  as  good  as 
special  utility  breeds  but  much  better  than  ordinary  mongrel  stock. 
The  hens  are  good  layers  and  especially  good  sitters  and  mothers, 
being  noted  for  the  courage  with  which  they  defend  their  young. 
As  table  fowls  they  are  meaty  but  rather  close-grained  and  hard. 

1  Short  for  "  black-breasted  red,"  a  description  applied  to  the  cock  of  this 
color  type,  though  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  typically  colored  male  is  all  black  ex- 
cept the  neck  and  back,  which  are  red,  and  would  be  more  correctly  described  as 
"  red-backed  black."  z  Photographs  for  Figs.  331-334  from  owner. 


350 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  335.  White  Cornish  Indian  Game  cock.    (Photo- 
graph from  owner,  Frank  Brown,  Marblehead,  Mass.) 

pounds  ;  pullet,  5!  pounds.  These  weights 
exceeded,  cocks  weighing  as 
high  as  1 1  and  1 2  pounds. 
Though  of  pronounced  game 
type  these  birds  are  usually 
classed  as  a  meat  or  table  breed. 
The  meat  is  very  abundant, 
especially  on  breast  and  legs. 
They  are  reputed  rather  poor 
layers  of  small,  light-brown 
eggs.  There  are  three  color 
varieties,  dark,  white,  and  red- 
laced.  The  dark  variety  are  of 


The  Cornish  In- 
dian Game x  was 
produced  in  England 
about  1830  to  1840, 
by  crossing  the  Aseel 
on  the  English  Game, 
and  (it  is  supposed) 
was  improved  many 
years  later  by  the  in- 
troduction of  Malay 
blood.  In  appearance 
a  giant  Aseel,  it  has 
little  of  the  fighting 
quality  of  that  breed. 
The  American  Stand- 
ard weights  are  cock, 
9  pounds ;  hen,  6J 
pounds ;  cockerel,  7i 
are  very  commonly 


FIG.  336.  White  Cornish  Indian  Game  hen 
(Photograph  from  owner,  Frank  Brown) 


1  I  have  retained  this  name  as  most 
appropriate  —  most  suggestive  of  the 
relation  of  this  to  other  types.  In 
England  the  breed  is  known  simply 
as  the  Indian  Game.  In  America  it 

went  by  that  name  first  but  later  was  called  Cornish  Indian  Game  ;  recently  some 
breeders,  hoping  to  increase  the  popularity  of  the  breed  by  eliminating  the  term 
"  game  "  from  its  name,  have  taken  to  calling  it  simply  Cornish. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       351 


FIG.  337.    Red-Laced  Cornish  Indian  Game  cock.    (Pho- 
tograph from  owner,  W.  H.  Card,  Bristol,  Connecticut) 


the  black-red  color 
type,  the  males 
black  and  red  in 
hackle,  back,  and 
saddle,  and  the  fe- 
males a  mahogany 
bay  penciled  with 
black.  The  white 
variety  have  all- 
white  plumage. 
The  red-laced  have 
plumage  of  white 
ground,  edged  with 
dark  buff  or  red. 
The  Indian  Game 
is  a  mixture  of 
game  types  from 
Asia  and  Europe. 


The  white  and  the  red-laced  varieties  were  made  in  America. 

The  Malay  Game  is  entirely  of  Asiatic  origin.  Whether  the 
type  was  developed  directly  by  selection  from  other  Asiatic  games, 
or  by  mixture  with  Asiatic 
types  other  than  game,  is  not 
known.  It  is  taller  and  less 
compactly  built  than  the  Indian 
Game,  suggesting  alliance  with 
Cochins  and  Brahmas  of  the 
type  first  brought  to  America. 
American  Standard  weights  are 
cock,  9  pounds ;  cockerel,  7 
pounds  ;  hen,  7  pounds  ;  pullet, 
5  pounds.  The  full-grown  male 
of  standard  weight  should  be 
26  inches  high ;  the  female, 
1 8  inches.  Malays  are  rarely 
seen  in  this  country.  Their 

.  *  FIG.  338.    Red-Laced  Cornish  Indian 

principal    interest    to    the    StU-        Game  hen.    (Photograph  from  owner, 
dent  is  in   the    suggestion   of  W.  H.  Card) 


352 


FIG.  339.    Red-Laced  Cornish  Indian 

Game   cockerel.      (Photograph  from 

owner,  W.  H.  Card) 


Laying  types, 
term  "egg  type"  was  defined,  and 
the  Mediterranean,  Dutch,  and  Polish 
groups  were  mentioned  as  illustrations 
of  that  type.  These  breeds  are  all  of 
the  same  general  conformation  and, 
with  a  few  exceptions,  about  the  same 
in  size.  The  differences  between  them 
are  differences  in  color  of  plumage 
and  skin,  and  in  development  of  head 
appurtenances.  Consideration  of  this 
type  as  a  whole  shows  that  geographi- 
cally it  is  a  European  type,  —  of  all 
Europe  rather  than  of  any  part  of  it, 
though  superficial  characters  (as  would 
be  expected)  have  been  developed  dif- 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

connection  between  the  game 
type  and  the  Brahma  and  Co- 
chin types.  In  America  they 
are  of  the  black-red  pattern. 
The  modern  Exhibition 
Game  was  developed  from  the 
English  type  of  pit  game,  with 
probably  some  infusion  of  Malay 
blood.  The  prominent  charac- 
teristic of  this  type  is  the  ex- 
aggerated length  of  neck  and 
legs.  The  standard  colors  are 
black-red,  brown-red,  golden 
duckwing,  silver  duckwing, 
birchen,  red  pile,  white,  and 
black.  In  common  with  most 
other  types  which  have  some 
feature  greatly  exaggerated, 
they  are  at  present  somewhat 
out  of  favor  with  poultrymen. 
In  Chapter  V  the 


FIG.  340.   Exhibition  Game  hen 


f  ,i  I  i  • /•<•  i  i        ,  -T  1U.    S4U.      EiAUlUiUUll    VJctlllC    11C11 

ferently  by  different  peoples,  and  (as    owneJd4  by  w.  H>  Mudge>  Wes. 
will   be  shown)   modifications    in   the  terly,  Rhode  Island 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       353 

direction  of  a  meat  type  were  made  in  some  cases.  Of  these 
breeds  and  their  varieties,  a  brown  Leghorn  with  small  single 
comb  comes  nearest  (and  very  near)  the  assumed  initial  type, 
and  also  resembles  the  black-breasted  red  game  fowl.  On  this 
account,  and  because,  also,  of  the  extent  to  which  indications  of 
Leghorn  blood  now  appear  in  ordinary  stock  in  almost  all  parts 
of  Europe,  some  suppose  that  the  Italian,  or  Leghorn,  is  the 
foundation  stock  of  all  European  races.  This  is  not  impossible. 
It  is  even  highly  probable  that  the  Romans  introduced  their  fowls 
wherever  they  went  in  the  period  of  their  conquests,  and  that  these 
introductions  sometimes  influenced  the  native  stock.  But  certain 
general  differences  in  the  laying  type  as  it  was  developed  along 
the  Mediterranean,  and  as  developed  along  a  more  northerly  route 
westward,  are  significant,  suggesting  differences  in  ideals  going 
much  farther  back  than  the  Roman  conquests.  These  differences 
will  appear  from  the  descriptions  of  the  European  breeds  of  the 
laying  type.  Before  describing  these,  something  should  be  said  of 
their  ancestry. 

The  early  laying  type.  The  common  native  stock  in  all  parts 
of  the  world  except  southeastern  Asia  seems  to  have  been,  from 
earliest  times,  of  the  initial  type  described,  having  this  type  slightly 
modified,  sometimes  for  the  better,  by  the  influence  of  the  game 
type,  or  by  careful  selection  for  egg  or  meat  qualities,  or  by  good 
care,  and  sometimes  for  the  worse  by  indifferent  breeding  and 
neglect,  but  almost  invariably  lacking  in  distinctive  characteristics. 
Of  this  character,  according  to  accounts,  are  most  of  the  fowls 
throughout  western  Asia,  northern  Africa,  and  southeastern  Europe 
to-day,  and  there  is  no  evidence  that  they  have  ever  been  different. 

Laying  breeds.  Along  the  Mediterranean  Sea  the  fowls  present 
a  general  uniformity  of  type  not  so  noticeable  elsewhere  on  the 
continent  of  Europe.  The  type  is  not  only  uniform  but  is  more 
simple  than  the  other  European  types  to  be  considered,  the  more 
elaborate  modifications  of  superficial  characters  in  some  of  the 
Mediterranean  breeds  familiar  to  modern  poultry  keepers  having 
been  developed  in  breeds  of  Mediterranean  derivation  in  north- 
western Europe.  As  developed  in  Italy  and  Spain  the  so-called 
Mediterranean  fowls  were,  and  still  are,  very  like  what  would 
naturally  be  developed  from  an  initial  type  (such  as  has  been 


354 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


assumed),  under  the  climatic  conditions  found  there,  by  people 
paying  little  attention  to  either  meat  qualities,  fighting  qualities, 
or  color  markings.  The  most  striking  peculiarity  of  these  fowls 
was  a  large,  fleshy  single  comb,  not  always  present  in  all  individuals 
of  any  of  the  breeds,  but  often  highly  developed  in  specimens  of 
them  all. 

From  Turkey  westward  through  southern  Russia,  Germany, 
Holland,  Belgium,  and  France,  fowls  of  the  same  general  body 
type  and  simple  furnishings  were  common,  but  among  them  there 
appeared,  in  large  numbers  in  some  localities,  and  in  occasional 
flocks  almost  everywhere,  two  other  conspicuous  types,  —  a  rose- 
combed  type  and  a  crested  type,  in  both  of  which  were  developed 
more  elaborate  color  patterns  than  were  found  among  the  fowls 
along  the  Mediterranean.  The  sharp  differentiation  of  color  pat- 
terns and  the  high  development  of  other  features  are  the  work  of 
the  modern  fancier,  but  though  we  have  little  accurate  knowledge 
of  the  earlier  history  of  the  breeds  which  he  took  in  their  crude 
form  and  developed,  what  we  have  indicates  that  the  separation  of 
types  began  very  early  in  the  westward  movement  of  the  human 
race,  and  that  interest  in  the  manipulation  of  form  and  color  in 
poultry  must  have  been  from  earliest  times,  as  to-day,  more  in- 
tense in  the  Teutonic  than  in  other  branches  of  the  race.  Breeds 
of  this  type  were  early  developed  in  France  and  England,  modified 
especially  for  meat  production  but  still  unmistakably  like  the  com- 
mon type.  In  almost  every  country  of  Europe  there  are  breeds 
of  this  same  body  type  but  unlike  in  such  characters  as  comb, 
crest,  color,  etc.  Most  of  these  are  hardly  known  outside  of  the 
countries  or  districts  where  they  are  found,  and  there  is  little  au- 
thentic information  about  their  origin  and  history.  In  discussing 
the  laying  breeds  the  familiar  ones  will  be  considered  first,  quite 
fully  and  in  the  order  of  their  apparent  relation  to  the  primitive 
type.  The  unfamiliar  ones  will  be  treated  very  briefly,  to  show  the 
extent  and  variety  of  the  class. 

The  Mediterranean  division  of  the  laying  type.  The  Mediter- 
ranean group  has  now  two  principal  subdivisions,  the  Italian  and 
the  Spanish.  Just  how  far  characteristic  differences  between  Italian 
and  Spanish  types  are  due  to  selection  and  modification  in  modern 
times  is  uncertain,  but  it  seems  probable  that  differences  in  color 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       355 

of  plumage,  skin,  and  feet  are  race  characteristics.  As  found  to- 
day in  their  native  countries  the  fowls  of  Spain  are,  on  the  whole, 
larger  than  those  of  Italy.  The  most  significant  general  difference 
between  them  is  the  color  of  skin  and  legs,  the  Italian  fowls  having 
a  yellow  skin  and  leg  (the  Black  Leghorn,  yellow  and  black),  while 
the  Spanish  have  white  or  gray  skin  with  flesh-colored  or  slate- 
colored  legs.  In  Spain  there  seems  to  have  been,  for  a  long  time, 
a  decided  preference  for  black  plumage,  and  that  is  said  to  prepon- 
derate in  the  native  breeds  there  to-day.  In  Italy  little  attention 
seems  to  have  been  given  to  differentiating  color  types.  Most  of 
the  modern  varieties  of  Leghorns  have  been  produced  in  America 
and  England  from  Italian  foundation  stock. 

Leghorns,  as  Italian  fowls  are  called  1  in  this  country  and  among 
English-speaking  peoples  generally,  are  said  to  have  been  first 
introduced  into  America  in  18  3  5 .  Those  first  brought  here  attracted 
little  attention.  In  1853  another  importation  was  made,  and  de- 
veloped some  interest  in  the  type.  Subsequently  a  few  more  lots 
were  brought  from  Italy,  but,  so  far  as  known,  importations  were 
not  numerous,  nor  was  the  total  number  of  birds  imported  large. 
In  the  early  importations  were  brown,  white,  buff,  and  black 
specimens,  and  possibly  other  colors,  but  only  the  brown,  white, 
and  black  varieties  were  developed  from  stock  brought  in  at  this 
period.  As  introduced  from  Italy  the  Leghorns  had  generally,  if 
not  exclusively,  single  combs,  and  that  type  of  comb  has,  from  the 
time  of  their  introduction,  been  far  more  popular  than  the  rose 
comb  developed  (as  is  generally  supposed)  by  infusions  of  Ham- 
burg blood.  The  ear  lobes  in  the  first  imported  stock  were  red 
or  partly  red. 

In  size  the  ordinary  Leghorn  is  small.  No  standards  of  weight 
have  been  established.  Average  specimens  weigh,  at  maturity, 
males,  from  4  to  4!  pounds  ;  females,  about  3  pounds.  The  largest 
individuals  in  average  flocks  exceed  these  weights,  and  when  bred 
for  size  the  average  is  easily  increased  from  I  to  2^  pounds. 
Occasional  specimens  weigh  more,  sometimes  equaling  in  size  the 
average  of  the  middle-weight  breeds. 

The  American  Standard  type  of  Leghorn  is  a  finely  modeled, 
graceful,  sprightly  fowl,  with  the  characteristic  large  comb,  wattles, 

1  Because  introduced  from  the  port  of  Leghorn. 


356 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


and  ear  lobes  of  the  Medi- 
terranean class,  and  of  size 
and  form  appropriate  to  the 
style  of  the  bird.  The  ear 
lobes  are  white  or  creamy 
white  in  color.  While  the 
body  plumage  is  not  as 
short  as  that  of  game  fowls, 
the  race  is  close  feathered, 
with  large  wings  and  tails. 
The  shanks  and  feet  are 
smooth,  the  number  of  toes 
normal, — four  on  each  foot. 
The  English  type  of 
Leghorn  is  larger  than  the 
American,  and  meatier,  ap- 
proaching the  Dorking  type, 
while  large  Leghorns  on 

the  lines  of  the  American  type  are  more  like  Minorcas  in  shape. 
The  varieties  of  Leghorns  take  their  names  from  the  colors  of 
their  plumage,  the  subvarieties  from  the  form  of  the  comb. 

Brown  Leghorns  (single- 
comb  and  rose-comb)  have  the 
black-red  color  pattern,  The 
early  Brown  Leghorns  were 
quite  light  in  color,  and  were 
sometimes  called  red.1  The 
American  Standard  exhibition 
male  has  the  red  very  rich  in 
tone,  with  hackle  and  saddle 
feathers  cleanly  striped  with 
black.  Females  of  like  breed- 
ing, the  natural  color  mates 
of  such  males,  are  very  dark 


FIG.  341.    Single-Comb  Brown  Leghorn 

cockerel,     Grove     Hill     poultry     yards, 

Waltham,  Massachusetts 


brown,    their    darkest    shades 
often  black  or  nearly  so,  and 


FIG.  342.    Single-Comb  Brown  Leg- 
horn   pullet,      Grove    Hill    poultry 
yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts 


1  As  recently  as  the  early  nineties  I  have  heard  the  name  "  Red  Leghorn  " 
applied  to  ordinary  Brown  Leghorns. 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       357 

not  to  be  compared  in  beauty  of  color  with  the  exhibition  female. 
The  Standard  female  has  a  ground  color  of  light  brown,  with 
black  tail,  dark-brown  flight  feathers,  a  fine  stippling  of  dark  brown 
on  the  back  and  wings,  the  breast  salmon  and  the  hackle  orange 
yellow  with  black  stripe.  The  male  of  the  same  breeding  is  very 
much  lighter  in  color  than  the  exhibition  male,  —  a  lighter  red, 
usually  with  less  striping  in  the  hackle  and  saddle,  and  the  black  of 
the  breast  and  body  more  or 
less  mottled  or  bronzed  with 
red.  In  reality  the  Brown 
Leghorn  has  two  color  vari- 
eties, dark  and  light.  The 
Standard  describes  the  male 
of  the  dark  and  the  female  of 
the  light  variety,  and  these 
are  shown  together  in  the  exhi- 
bition pen.  They  are  chosen, 
not  as  matching  in  color, 
like  the  exhibition  Barred 
Plymouth  Rocks,  but  as  show- 
ing the  finest  color  develop- 
ments in  the  different  sexes. 
Brown  Leghorns  are  some- 
times bred  to  secure  standard 
specimens  of  both  sexes  from 
the  same  mating,  and  when 
so  bred,  in  time  give  a  third  intermediate  color  variety,  specimens 
of  which  often  closely  approximate  Standard  requirements,  though 
in  general  they  have  little  chance  of  winning  in  competition  with 
birds  of  the  other  lines. 

Buff  Leghorns  (single-comb  and  rose-comb).  That  among  early 
importations  of  Leghorns  there  were  more  of  the  yellow,  or  buff, 
than  of  the  brown-red  shade  seems  certain,  though  little  interest 
was  taken  in  them  at  that  time.  Buff  Leghorns  were  shown  under 
that  name  in  America  in  1867,  more  than  twenty  years  before  the 
modern  Buff  Leghorn  began  to  be  developed  in  England,  but  they 
made  so  little  impression  that  the  variety  soon  disappeared,  and 
even  the  fact  of  their  existence  was  forgotten  until  records  of  their 


FIG.  343.  Rose-Comb  Brown  Leghorn 
cockerel.  (Photograph  from  owner, 
W.  W.  Kulp,  Pottstown,  Pennsylvania) 


353 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  344.   Single-Comb  Buff  Leghorn  cock 

(Photograph    from   owner,    H.   M.   Lamon, 

Washington,  D.  C.) 


exhibition  were  found  a 
few  years  since.  About 
1888  the  modern  Buff 
Leghorn  was  introduced 
into  England  from  Den- 
mark, with  the  color  in 
very  crude  condition.  The 
Danish  stock  undoubtedly 
came  originally  from  Italy, 
where  buff  or  yellow  birds 
are  often  seen,  but  of  its 
history  in  Denmark  little 
is  known.  It  is  said  l  that 
in  England  the  Buff  Co- 
chin was  at  once  effec- 
tively used  to  improve 
the  color.  The  first  birds 


brought  to  America  were,  with  few  exceptions,  far  from  being  of 
the  uniform  shade  of  golden  buff 
required  by  the   Standard.     Both 
white   and   black   were    prevalent 
in  wings  and  tail,  and  the  males 

1  Though  the  authority  for  this  is  good 
and  in  accord  with  common  opinion,  my 
own  experience  with  Buff  Leghorns  leads 
me  to  doubt  whether,  if  Cochins  were  used, 
their  influence  extended  to  all  the  stock  or 
was  as  great  as  was  supposed.  The  first 
importations  from  Denmark  to  England 
were  made  in  1888.  The  cross  with  the 
Cochin  was  made  in  that  year  or  in  the 
following  year.  The  first  importation  to 
America  was  made  in  1890.  In  1893  I  FIG.  345.  Rose-Comb  Buff  Leghorn 
bought  eggs  of  this  strain,  and  bred  it  until  hen.  (Photograph  from  owner,  II.  J. 
1899.  In  the  seasons  of  1894,  1895,  and  Fisk'  Falconer,  New  York) 

1896  I  reared,  in  all,  about  1500  birds  of 

this  variety,  and  in  that  number  no  specimen  appeared  which  at  all  suggested 
Cochin  ancestry.  The  birds  were  unmistakably  Leghorns,  the  variations  in  shape 
often  suggesting  an  admixture  of  Game  blood  and  sometimes  of  blood  of  the 
Sussex  type,  while  the  colors  suggested  combinations  of  White,  Brown,  and  Pile 
Leghorns,  and  Red  Sussex.  It  is  hardly  credible  that  undesirable  Cochin  char- 
acteristics could  be  so  completely  eliminated  in  so  short  a  time. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       359 


generally  had  reddish 
hackles,  backs,  and 
saddles.  Though  re- 
ports of  exhibitions 
every  year  described 
males  quite  perfect  in 
color,  it  was  about 
1900  before  males  of 
a  uniform  shade  '  of 
buff  were  produced. 
The  rose-combed  va- 
riety was  developed  in 
America,  apparently 
by  crossing  with  the 
Rose-Combed  White 
Leghorn. 

White  Leghorns 
(single-comb  and  rose- 
comb).  The  single- 
combed  variety  was 

developed  in  this  country  contemporaneously  with  the  brown  and 

black  varieties,  attracting  less  attention  than  the  brown  at  first,  but 

later   becoming   more    popular  . 

with  specialists  in  egg  produc- 
tion.  The  color  of  the  plumage 

is  white  throughout,  —  naturally 

a   creamy  white,   the    dazzling 

white    seen    in   the    exhibition 

room  being  secured  (except  in 

rare  cases)  only  by  washing  or 

bleaching  the  feathers.    In  its 

relation  to  other  varieties  the 

White  Leghorn  represented  the 

last  stage  in  the  reduction  of 

the  color  of  the  black-red  fowl 

of    the    initial    type,    the 


FIG.  346.   Single-Comb  White  Leghorn  cock 
(Photograph  by  E.  J.  Hall) 


sev- 


eral intermediate  stages  being 
brown,  red,  buff,  white. 


FIG.  347.    Single-Comb  White  Leghorn 

hen.    (Photograph  from  owner,  Harmon 

Bradshaw,  Lebanon,  Indiana) 


36° 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  348.    Single-Comb  Black  Leg- 
horn    pullet,    Turtle     Point     faring 
Saratoga,  New  York.    (Photograph 
from  owner) 


Black  Leghorns  (single-comb) 
have  been  bred  in  this  country 
continuously  since  the  early  im- 
portations, but  never  extensively. 
In  the  dark  sub  variety  of  the 
Brown  Leghorn  and  the  Black 
Leghorn  we  have  the  stages  of 
the  intensification  of  color  from 
the  original  type. 

Mottled  Leghorns  (single-comb), 
the  Anconas,  are  given  in  the 
American  Standard  exactly  the 
same  description  for  shape  as  Leg- 
horns. They  have  distinctive  color 
characteristics  only.  The  plumage 
is  black  with  each  feather  tipped 
with  white,  giving  an  even  mottling 
of  white  on  a  black  ground.  According  to  most  authentic  accounts 
the  variety  came  to  England  from  Italy,  and  thence  to  America. 

NOTE.  The  five  foregoing  are  the  Italian  varieties,  in  which  there  is  general 
interest  in  America  and  which  are  commonly  seen  in  our  shows.  Other  varieties 
of  this  class  are  seen  only  occasionally  and  in  small  numbers.  Some  observations 
on  the  relative  values  of  these  varieties, 
and  on  certain  differences  between  them, 
are  therefore  better  presented  here  than 
at  the  end  of  the  list.  In  everything  but 
color  the  Leghorns  as  they  came  from 
Italy  were  the  same.  In  the  American 
Standard  the  descriptions  for  shape  are 
the  same  for  all.  Theoretically,  the  vari- 
eties are  identical  except  in  color,  but  the 
differentiation  of  a  breed  into  varieties 
inevitably  tends  to  further  differentiation 
as  the  result  of  individual  differences.  In 
addition,  introductions  of  foreign  blood 
usually  bring  in  different  elements,  and 
though  the  purpose  of  these  is  to 
strengthen  a  variety  or  breed  character- 
istic, and  foreign  characters  are  syste-  FIG.  349.  Ancona  hen.  (Photograph 
matically  bred  out  by  fanciers,  the  use  of  fronT  United  States  Department  of 
the  fancier's  culls,  and  indifferent  selection  Agriculture) 


TYPES;  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS     361 

by  less  careful  breeders,  tends  to  give  the  variety  as  a  whole  more  of  the  for- 
eign qualities  than  was  intended,  and  to  create  between  varieties  differences 
not  in  accord  with  the  standards.  Of  the  single-combed  varieties,  Brown  Leg- 
horns have  had  at  various  times  infusions  of  blood  of  the  Black-Red  Pit  Game ; 
White  Leghorns,  infusions  of  the  blood  of  the  White  Minorca ;  Buff  Leghorns, 
as  related,  are  a  recent  mixture ;  the  Ancona  has  had  infusions  of  Minorca 
blood.  That  the  rose-combed  varieties  are  originally  indebted  to  the  Ham- 
burgs  for  their  combs  there  is  little  doubt.  As  a  result  of  these  different  in- 
fusions of  blood,  rose-combed  varieties  generally  show  a  little  more  of  the 
plumpness  of  the  Hamburg  and  something  of  its  delicacy.  Single-Comb 
Brown  Leghorns  are  more  rugged  than  others,  except,  perhaps,  the  blacks. 
White  Leghorns  are  generally  a  little  larger  than  the  other  varieties.1  White 
Leghorns  and  Anconas  lay  larger  eggs  than  the  others.  Buff  Leghorns  were 
at  first  very  rugged  and  laid  a  slightly  tinted  egg.  After  their  first  boom  the 
breeding  of  this  variety  was  left  largely  in  the  hands  of  a  few  fanciers.  Though 
these  made  rapid  improvement  in  color,  something  was  lost  in  other  directions. 

Pile  Leghorns  (single-comb)  have  a  white-red  color  pattern,  the 
black  in  the  initial  type  being  replaced  by  white  and  the  red  much 
reduced  in  strength.  The  true  place  of  such  a  combination  in  a 
color  series  is  not  readily  determined.  Whether  such  a  combina- 
tion could  be  produced  directly  by  elimination  of  color  is  not 
known.  The  variety  was  made  by  combination,  —  by  mating  a 
black-red  with  a  white  bird.  It  is  bred  only  as  a  novelty. 

Duckwing  Leghorns  (single-comb)  are  of  recent  English  ori- 
gin, and  are  said  to  have  been  produced  like  Pile  Leghorns,  by 
crossing  Brown  and  White  Leghorns.  This  is  the  tolerably  well- 
authenticated  statement  regarding  the  stock  of  the  most  promi- 
nent early  fanciers  of  the  variety.  According  to  other  versions  Pile 
Game  and  Silver  Gray  Dorkings  were  crossed  to  produce  the 
Silver  Duckwing  Leghorn.  The  Silver  Duckwing  Leghorn  has  a 
black-white  color  combination,  the  red  of  the  black-red  pattern  in 
the  male  being  absent,  leaving  white.  In  the  female  the  light- 
brown  ground  becomes  white,  the  dark-brown  parts  black,  while 
the  salmon  on  the  breast  remains.  In  the  Golden  Duckwings  the 
male  is  of  a  black-bay,  or  buff,  color  pattern,  the  (Standard) 
female  so  like  the  female  of  the  silver  subvariety  that,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  in  English  Duckwing  Leghorns  the  silver  females  are 
shown  with  both  golden  and  silver  males,  and  the  golden  females 
not  shown.  While  the  Standard  calls  for  white  ground  in  silver 

1  This  is  true  of  general  flocks ;  it  is  not  so  noticeable  in  the  showroom. 


362 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  350.    Silver  Duckwing   Leghorn   cock 

(Photograph    from    owner,    Thomas    Peer, 

Fairneld,  New  Jersey) 


females,  the  variety  is 
not  well  developed,  and 
females  are  said  to  be 
often  not  distinguishable 
from  Brown  Leghorns. 

Dominique  Leghorns  or 
Cuckoo  Leghorns  (single- 
comb)  have  the  barred 
pattern  and  gray  colors 
of  the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock.  This  color  pattern 
is  quite  common  in  Italy. 
The  specimens  which  are 
occasionally  exhibited  in 
this  country  are  probably 
made  by  crosses  of  White 
and  Black  Leghorns,  or 
of  White  Leghorns  with 
black  or  barred  fowls. 
The  Spanish  section  of  the  Mediterranean  class.  The  Spanish 
group  includes  five  so-called  breeds,  —  Castilian,  Black  Spanish, 
Minorca,  Andalusian,  and  Barbe- 
zieux.  Of  these  the  first-  and  last- 
named  are  bred  only  in  Spain  ;  the 
others  in  their  modern  form  are 
largely  the  result  of  English  breed- 
ing, though  it  appears  that  in  one 
case  the  development  of  particular 
characters  was  begun  on  the  conti- 
nent side  of  the  English  Channel. 
As  already  noted,  the  conspicuous 
differences  between  the  Spanish 
and  Italian  races  are  color  of  skin 
and  legs,  and  the  general  Span- 
ish preference  for  black  plumage. 
Wrhile  designated  as  different 
breeds,  these  Spanish  fowls  are  FIG.  35z  Silver  Duckwing  Leg- 

.     .    r  horn    pullet.      (Photograph    from 

properly   varieties    of    one    breed.  owner,  Thomas  Peer) 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       363 

Originally  all  were  single-combed  (as  they  are  still  in  Spain),  the 
rose-combed  subvarieties  having  been  made  recently  in  America. 

Castilian  fowls  are  in  appearance  unimproved  Minorcas.  They 
are  supposed  to  be  the  original  breed  from  which  the  others  are 
derived.  According  to  tradition  they  were  brought' to  Spain  by  the 
Moors  at  the  time  of  the  Moorish  invasion.  If  that  could  be  estab- 
lished, it  would  indicate  a  third  line  of  movement  of  fowls  from  the 
starting  point  across  northern  Africa.  Such  traditions,  however, 
are  most  unreliable,  and  in  a 
broad  survey  of  the  movement 
and  development  of  these  races 
it  appears  far  more  probable 
that  the  Spanish  races  were 
developed  from  the  Italian. 
The  difference  in  color  of  skin 
and  legs  is  no  obstacle  to  this 
theory,  for  yellow-skinned  races 
produce  many  individuals  with 
white  skin,  and  popular  pref- 
erence for  black  fowls  would 
lead  to  the  establishment  of 
white  or  gray  skin  and  dark 
legs  as  race  characteristics. 
The  Castilian  fowl  is  in  size 
between  the  Leghorn  and  the 
Minorca,  with  color  of  skin 
and  shanks  like  the  Minorca, 
while  the  comb  is  more  of  the  Leghorn  style,  and  the  ear  lobes  are 
white  tipped  with  red.  Black  is  the  preferred  color,  but  there  are 
also  whites  and  mixtures  (especially  the  darker  shades)  of  black 
and  white.  Castilian  fowls,  particularly  the  black,  were  introduced 
into  England  and  Holland  several  centuries  ago,  and  from  them 
came  the  two  varieties  next  described. 

Minorcas  (two  color  varieties,  black  and  white,  single-combed 
and  rose-combed  subvarieties  of  both)  were  long  called  Red-faced 
Spanish.  English  breeders  made  the  Minorca,  as  afterwards  they 
made  their  Leghorns,  more  on  meat-type  lines,  —  made  it  larger 
and  heavier ;  and  the  fanciers  breeding  for  exhibition  carried  the 


FIG.  352.    Silver  Duckwing   Leghorn 

cockerel.     (Photograph   from   owner, 

Thomas  Peer) 


364 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


development    of    the 
comb  to  such  an  extent 
that  it  became  a  mon- 
strosity and  an  imped- 
iment. The  American 
Standard    calls    for   a 
bird  of  finer  type,  yet 
distinctly   larger   than 
the  Leghorn  and  with  a 
relatively  larger  comb. 
To  maintain  the  size, 
the  following  standards 
of  weight  were  estab- 
lished :       single-comb 
black :  cock,  9  pounds  ; 
cockerel,    7!   pounds; 
hen,  7 1  pounds;  pullet, 
6J  pounds ;  rose-comb 
black  and  single-comb 
white :  cock,  8  pounds  ; 
cockerel,  61-  pounds ; 
hen,  61-  pounds;   pullet,  5^ 
pounds.     Black    cock   birds 
over  i  o  pounds  and  hens  over 
8  pounds  in  weight  are  fre- 
quently produced.  In  general 
outlines  the  M  inorca,  as  distin- 
guished from  the  Leghorn,  is 
an  enlargement  of  the  type, 
showing  more  straight  lines 
and   angles,   because  of   its 
greater  size.    It  is  generally 
conceded  that  Minorca  eggs 
average  larger  than  those  of 
any  other  race  of  fowls.    Mi- 
FiG-354.  Single-Comb  Black  Minorca  pullet1  -,  nrolific  as 

Leghorns.    The  ordinary  Black  Minorca  stock  is  distinguishable 

1  Photographs  from  owner,  Dr.  Howard  Mellor,  Spring  House,  Pennsylvania. 


FIG.  353.    Single-Comb  Black  Minorca  cockerel1 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       365 


FIG.  355.     Rose-Comb  White    Minorca  cockerel 
(Photograph  by  Eugene  Hall) 


from  the  Black  Leg- 
horn only  by  the  color 
of  the  skin,  and 
(usually,  not  always) 
by  its  slightly  greater 
size.  Much  of  this 
stock  is  mixed  Leg- 
horn-Minorca. In- 
stances have  been 
known  of  breeders 
advertising  Black 
Leghorns  and  Black 
Minorcas  and  ship- 
ping both  from  the 
same  lot.  Compar- 
isons of  Leghorns 

and  Minorcas  based  on  presumptive  constitutional  breed  differ- 
ences are  fallacious.     Practically  there  is  no  difference  between 

them.    The  Black  Minorca 

has    been    commonly    pre- 
ferred to  the  Black  Leghorn 

wherever    a   black  fowl  of 

the  laying  type  was  wanted. 

On  the  other  hand,  where  a 

white  fowl  of  this  type  was 

wanted,    the    Leghorn    has 

been  given  preference,  and, 

as  in  the  case  of  the  black 

varieties,  the  White  Minorca 

has  been  used  to  give  size 

to  the  Leghorn. 

The     typical     American 

Standard  Minorca  is  usually 


FIG.  356.    Single-Comb  White  Minorca  hen 

(Photograph     from     owner,     H.  J.   Teetz, 

Gloversville,  New  York) 


more  docile  than  the  Leg- 
horn, less  able,  because  of 
its  excessively  large  comb, 
to  stand  low  temperatures,  and  ordinarily  less  rugged,  though  that 
is  largely  a  matter  of  the  handling  of  the  stock.    The  rose-combed 


366  POULTRY  CULTURE 

subvarieties  in  both  Whites  and  Blacks  are  usually  of  slighter  build 
than  the  single-combed  birds.  Black  and  White  Hamburgs  are 
supposed  1  to  have  been  used  to  get  the  rose  combs. 

Black  Spanish  (single-comb),  often  called  White- Faced  Black 
Spanish,  have  the  same  weight  standards  as  White  Minorcas,  and 
differ  from  Black  Minorcas  principally  in  the  head  furnishings. 
The  comb  and  wattles  are  smaller,  more  of  the  Leghorn  style. 
The  white  face  which  is  the  peculiar  characteristic  of  the  breed 
was  produced  by  enormously  developing  the  face  and  ear  lobes,— 
a  less  marvelous  accomplishment  than  at  first  thought  appears,  for 


FIG.  357.    White-Faced  Black  Spanish.    (Photograph  from  owner, 
J.  H.  Warrington,  Cornwall,  Ontario) 

all  fowls  with  large  combs  and  white  ears  tend  naturally  to  develop 
white  faces  and  large  ear  lobes  and  wattles.  This  Spanish  variety 
has  been  bred  in  Holland  and  England  for  several  centuries.  The 
white  face  is  said  to  have  been  developed  first  in  Holland,  but 
English  fanciers  are  credited  with  the  extreme  development  of  it. 
The  Black  Spanish  was  introduced  into  America  and  became  well 
known  before  the  Leghorns  and  Minorcas.  For  a  long  time  it 
was  quite  popular,  but  it  always  had  the  reputation  of  being  deli- 
cate. The  enormous  white  face  was  easily  injured  and  was  subject 

1  The  originator  of  the  Rose-Comb  Black  Minorca  declared  that  he  had  de- 
veloped the  rose  comb  by  selection,  beginning  with  single-combed  birds  with 
side  sprigs.  Experienced  breeders  are  decidedly  skeptical  about  this.  One  re- 
marked to  me,  "  He  was  foolish  if  he  did,  for  it  would  be  quicker,  easier,  and 
better  to  cross  with  Black  Hamburg." 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       367 

to  skin  diseases,  and  after  the  Leghorns  and  Minorcas  became 

known,  the  Spanish  gradually  disappeared. 

White-Faced  White  Spanish 
came  occasionally  as  sports  from 
the  black  variety. 

Andalusians  (single-comb  and 
rose-comb)  were  first  known  as 
the  Blue  Minorca.  The  color  of 
the  female  is  a  slaty  blue  laced 
with  darker  blue.  The  color  of 
the  male  is  the  same  as  that  of  the 
female  on  breast  and  body,  with 
wing  flights  blue,  and  the  hackle, 
back,  saddle,  and  tail  blue-black. 
This  color  is  produced  some- 
times (not  regularly)  by  crossing 
black  and  white  birds,  and  in  re- 
production continuously  produces 
FIG.  358.  Blue  Andalusian  cock  some  black  and  some  white,  as 

well  as  blue,  specimens.    In  size 

and  shape  the  Andalusian  is  between  the  Leghorn  and  the  Minorca. 

As  usually  bred  it  is  more  of  the 

Leghorn  than  of  the  Minorca  type. 

American    Standard    weights    are 

cock,  6  pounds ;  cockerel,  5  pounds ; 

hen,  5  pounds  ;   pullet,  4  pounds. 

The   Andalusian    has    long   been 

known  in  England,  but  is  a  com- 
paratively recent  arrival  in  America. 

Here  it  is  a  favorite  with  a  few, 

but  is   not   generally  popular,  be- 
cause of  the  uncertainty  of  color 

in  breeding. 

Other  races  of  the  Mediterranean 

type.      Throughout    Europe    there        FIG.  359.    Blue  Andalusian  pullet 

are  many  races  like  the  Mediter- 
ranean (especially  the  Leghorn)  type  in  form  and  size  but  unlike 
it  in  the  color  of  the   skin  ;    and  though   in   many  cases   their 


368  POULTRY  CULTURE 

resemblance  to  the  Leghorn  type  is  striking,  on  the  whole  they 
seem  more  closely  allied  to  the  Hamburgs  and  Polish.  The  breeds 
which  may  be  considered  quite  distinctively  Italian  in  origin  are 
the  Magyar  of  Hungary  and  the  Lakenv elder  of  Germany."  The 
Magyar  is  said  to  more  closely  resemble  the  native  Italian  fowls 
than  do  the  Leghorns  of  England.  The  color  varieties  of  the 
Magyar  are  black,  red,  yellow,  white,  and  speckled.  The  variety 
called  red  is  the  Brown  Leghorn  with  red  ear  lobes.  The  Laken- 
velder  is  a  fowl  of  the  Leghorn  type,  with  an  ermine  color  pattern 
in  which  the  black  is  more  prevalent  than  in  the  varieties  of  the 
Asiatic  and  American  classes  having  that  pattern.  It  is  a  new 
arrival  in  America  and  seems  to  be  growing  in  popularity. 

Mid-European  laying  types.  The  modern  types  of  the  central 
European  races  of  fowls,  as  known  in  America,  have  been  received 
principally  from  England,  after  having  been  modified  to  conform 
to  English  ideals.  To  appreciate  fully  the  relations  of  the  Medi- 
terranean and  mid-European  types  it  is  necessary  to  study  the 
latter  as  they  were  before  being  taken  in  hand  by  British  fanciers. 
These  races  may  be  divided  into  two  general  classes,  the  familiar 
representatives  of  the  classes  being  the  Hamburgs  and  the  Polish. 

The  Hamburg  as  developed  by  fanciers  is  a  rose-combed  breed, 
the  shape  of  the  comb  being  considered  a  breed  character.  As 
first  brought  to  England  they  had  both  rose  and  single  combs, 
as  the  native  stocks  on  the  continent  of  Europe  from  which  the 
modern  exhibition  Hamburgs  were  originally  derived  still  have. 
In  these  stocks,  indeed,  the  single  comb  is  the  more  common 
and  is  regarded  as  most  typical.  The  color  of  skin  and  legs  is  thus 
the  only  general  character  distinguishing  this  mid- European  type 
from  the  Leghorn,  and  as  in  this  character  it  is  like  the  Spanish 
races  of  the  Mediterranean  class,  it  is  apparent  that  the  idea  of 
fundamental  breed  differences  between  these  races  has  no  real 
foundation.  . 

The  Polish  races  present,  with  body  type  similar  to  that  of  the 
other  races  that  we  have  been  considering,  a  very  different  develop- 
ment of  head  appurtenances.  The  comb  is  split,  V-shaped,  and 
very  small,  and  the  wattles  and  ear  lobes  are  of  corresponding  size. 
These  head  embellishments,  so  conspicuous  in  the  other  represent- 
atives of  the  laying  type,  almost  disappear  in  the  Polish.  They 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       369 


FIG.  360.  Lakenvelder  hen l 


FIG.  361.  Lakenvelder  cock 


are  often  almost  invisible  in  the  mass  of  feathers  by  which  they 
have  been  largely  displaced.  On  superficial  consideration  and  slight 
acquaintance  with  poultry  types  it  seems  that  in  this  Polish  race, 


FIG.  362.   Lakenvelder  cockerel1 


FIG.  363.    Lakenvelder  pullet1 


if  anywhere,  we  have  a  distinctive  breed  (shape)  character,  plainly 
differentiating  it  from  breeds  with  large  combs  and  wattles  and 
no  special  development  of  feathers  on  the  head  ;  but,  as  in  the 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  Ralph  C.  Greene,  Sayville,  Long  Island. 


370 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


case  of  the  Hamburg,  to  find  the  true  relation  to  fowls  of  similar 
body  type  we  must  go  to  kindred  and  earlier  forms.  As  has  been 
shown,  the  Hamburg  races  are  allied  to  the  Leghorns  on  the  one 
side,  and  on  the  other  side  are  undoubtedly  akin  to  the  crested 
Polish  type.  Among  the  progenitors  of  the  modern  Hamburgs 
crests  and  feathered  legs  were  not  unknown  ;  the  Polish  of  three 
hundred  years  ago  (as  shown  by  paintings  of  the  time)  had  crests, 
beards,  and  sometimes  quite  heavily  feathered  legs.  Indications 
(not  sure  but  none  the  less  significant)  point  to  a  movement 
of  ancestors  of  this  type  from  central  Asia  by  a  northerly  route 
through  Siberia,  Russia,  and  Poland  to  Germany,  France,  England, 
and  America.  This  will  be  brought  out  in  the  special  descriptions. 
Considering  large  combs  (large  flesh  or  skin  developments)  and 
large  crests  (large  feather  developments)  as  racial  characters,  it 
should  be  noted  that  they  are  not  essentially  distinct  characters, 
but  different  developments  of  the  same  part,  and  that  while  great 
development  in  one  direction  is  not  compatible  with  great  develop- 
ment in  the  other,  more  moderately  developed  combs,  crests,  and 
beards  may  be  equally  prominent  features  of  the  same  head. 

While  there  are  some  slight  indications  that  the  rose  comb  may 
have  come  directly  from  the  single  comb  before  or  shortly  after 
the  importation  of  fowls  into  southeastern  Europe,  and  that  the  rose 
type  was  preserved  by  preference  in  a  considerable  part  of  the  poultry 
in  a  strip  between  that  occupied  by  the  single-combed  type  on  the 
south  and  that  traversed  and  in  part  occupied  by  the  crested  type 
on  the  north,  on  a  general  view  of  the  types  and  from  what  can  be 
learned  of  their  development  it  seems  at  least  as  probable  that 
rose  combs  came  occasionally  from  the  mingling  of  the  single- 
combed  and  crested  types,  —  not  necessarily  from  a  direct  cross, 
but  from  some  combination.  For  centuries  the  races  have  been  in 
contact  in  central  and  western  Europe.  The  crested  type  reached 
northern  Italy  and  was  established  in  one  locality  there,  but  on 
the  whole  found  little  favor  along  the  Mediterranean  ;  but  from 
Germany  west  the  country  was  a  veritable  melting  pot  of  the 
southern  and  northern  races. 

Campines.  A  small,  active  race  of  fowls,  which  has  been  for 
centuries  the  common  stock  of  the  Campine  country  in  Belgium, 
has  been  given  the  name  of  that  district.  It  is  thought  by  some 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       371 


FIG.  364.    Silver  Campine  cockerel,  owned  by 
M.  R.  Jacobus,  Ridgefield,  New  Jersey 


that  the  stock  may  have 
come  from  Turkey,  birds  of 
exactly  the  same  descrip- 
tion having  been  observed 
there  by  Aldrovandus.  Bel- 
gian tradition  dates  the 
race  in  Belgium  as  far 
back  as  the  early  part  of 
the  thirteenth  century, 
four  hundred  years  before 
Aldrovandus.  If  this  tra- 
dition is  true,  it  would 
appear  that  the  race  has 
been  bred,  in  close  con- 
formity to  the  present  type, 
for  at  least  seven  hundred 
years.  Campines  are  about 
the  size  of  ordinary  Leghorns,  and  are  typically  single-combed, 
though  it  is  said  that  rose  combs  sometimes  occur.  Their  resemblance 
to  Penciled  Hamburgs  is  so  great 
that  a  fancier,  seeing  the  birds  and 
not. knowing  what  they  were  called, 
would  unhesitatingly  describe  them 
as  Single-Combed  Penciled  Ham- 
burgs.  There  are  two  color  varie- 
ties, Silver  and  Golden.  In  the 
former  both  the  male  and  the  fe- 
male are  finely  barred  (or  penciled) 
with  black  and  white,  with  white 
hackle.  The  tail  of  the  male  is 
black  with  small  coverts  more  or 
less  barred  or  penciled .  The  Golden 
variety  has  the  same  pattern  as  the 
Silver,  with  the  white  replaced  by 
bay.  About  1890  they  were  intro- 
duced into  England,  and  shortly  after  into  America,  where  interest 
in  them  proved  very  short-lived.  Though  developed  more  on  Leg- 
horn lines  and  with  fixed  color  pattern,  the  Campine  as  first 


FIG.  365.     Silver  Campine   pullet, 
owned  by  M.  R.  Jacobus.    (Photo- 
graph by  F.  L.  Sewell) 


372  POULTRY  CULTURE 

introduced  was  in  other  respects  very  like  the  little  half-wild  mon- 
grels which  constituted  the  mass  of  American'  native  stock  prior 
to  the  introduction  and  development  of  improved  stocks.  Within 
a  few  years  there  has  been  a  marked  revival  of  interest  in  the  Sil- 
ver Campine  in  America,  due  to  the  introduction  of  stock  much 
larger  than  that  of  the  early  importations.  This  stock  is  really  an 
English  type  of  the  Campine,  bearing  the  same  relation  to  the 
Belgian  type  as  the  English-type  Leghorns  and  Minorcas  do  to 
the  lighter-weight  American  types  of  those  breeds.  The  color,  too, 
has  been  slightly  changed.  The  males  of  the  first  stock  brought 
to  this  country  had  saddle  feathers  of  the  same  colors  as  their 
hackles. 

Friesland  fowls.  In  Holland  there  has  existed  for  centuries  a 
race  called  Friesland,  which  is  evidently  closely  allied  to  the  Cam- 
pine.  The  leading  color  varieties  are  the  same,  but  in  addition  the 
Friesland  has  yellow-penciled  (yellow  and  white),  white,  black,  and 
cuckoo  varieties.  Rose-combed  fowls  of  this  race  were  developed 
as  a  separate  breed  with  the  name  "  Hollanders,"  and  are  believed 
to  have  been  used  for  foundation  stock  in  making  the  penciled 
varieties  of  the  modern  Hamburg. 

Hamburgs,  as  known  in  England  and  America,  are  usually  small, 
rose-combed  fowls  of  the  laying  type,  with  gray  skin  and  clean, 
slate-colored  legs.  The  rose  comb  on  the  small  laying  type  is  the 
basis  of  formation  of  the  group.  Although  in  the  American  Stand- 
ard the  shape  is  described  in  the  same  terms  for  the  six  varieties, 
—  Golden-Spangled,  Silver-Spangled,  Golden-Penciled,  Silver-Pen- 
ciled, Black,  and  White,  —  some  of  these  varieties  differ  typically 
in  shape,  as  would  be  expected  in  birds  of  the  same  general  type 
but  different  ancestry.  The  name  "  Hamburg  "  was  given  in  Eng- 
land about  the  middle  of  the  last  century  to  all  the  then-known 
rose-combed  varieties  of  fowls  of  this  body  type.  This  name  is  said 
to  have  been  selected  because  Hamburg  was  the  chief  port  from 
which  fowls  of  this  type  were  imported.  This  report  of  its  chris- 
tening does  not  accord  with  commonly  accepted  English  accounts 
(to  be  noted  shortly)  of  the  origin  of  the  breed,  particularly  of  the 
Spangled  and  Black  varieties. 

Penciled  Hamburgs  (Golden  and  Silver)  were  apparently  de- 
rived from  the  same  stock  as  the  Campine  and  Friesland  fowls. 


FIG.  366.    Silver- Spangled  Hamburg  cock1 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      373 

As  "  Dutch  Everyday 
Layers "  they  were 
known  in  England  a 
hundred  years  ago. 
Even  as  late  as  the 
middle  of  the  last  cen- 
tury they  appeared  in 
the  London  market 
direct  from  Holland. 
They  have  the  same 
colors  as  the  continen- 
tal races  mentioned, 
except  that  the  golden 
variety  has  a  black  tail. 
Spangled Hambu  rgs 
(Golden  and  Silver). 

According  to  some  English  authorities  Hamburgs  were  a  British 
race  of  fowls  bred  in  the  north  of  England  for  centuries.  Con- 
sidering the  constant  communication  between  the  island  and  the 
continent,  it  may  well  be  that, 
though  bred  in  England  for 
several  hundred  years,  they 
were  of  foreign  origin,  and  the 
stock  perhaps  kept  up  by  fre- 
quent importations.  Certainly 
a  comparison  of  the  color  pat- 
terns of  fowls  as  developed  in 
different  parts  of  Europe  indi- 
cates that  these  varieties  must 
have  originated  where  all  the 
other  novel  styles  of  markings 
did.  English  breeders  and  fan- 
ciers may  be  credited  with  hav-  FlG.  367.  Silver-Spangled  Hamburg  hen 
ing  improved  and  perfected 

these  markings  and  also  those  of  the  penciled  varieties,  but  it 
seems  altogether  improbable  that  they  originated  them.     In  size 

1  Photographs   of    Silver- Spangled   Hamburgs  from  owner,  Dr.  J.  S.  Wolfe, 
Bloomfield,  New  Jersey. 


374 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  368.    Silver-Spangled  Hamburg  cockerel 


the  Spangled  Hamburgs  in  America  are  usually  larger  than  the 

others ;  they  are  also  plumper-bodied,  suggesting  kinship  to  the 

Polish.  The  plumage 
of  the  golden  variety  is 
a  dark  bay  ground  with 
a  black  spangle  at  the 
tip  of  each  feather,  ex- 
cept that  the  hackle  and 
saddle  of  the  male  have 
a  black  stripe  and  the 
tail  is  black.  The  silver 
variety  has  black  span- 
gles on  a  white  ground 
throughout. 

Black  Hamburgs. 
The  Black  Hamburg 
was  probably  made  in 
England  by  crossing 

the  Black  Game  on  the   Golden-Spangled  Hamburg. 

White  Hamburgs.  The  White  Hamburg  is  said  to  have  been 

produced  in  America  by  systematic  breeding  of  the  lightest-colored 

Silver-Penciled  Hamburgs. 

NOTE.  Before  the  Leghorns 
became  known  in  America,  Ham- 
burgs were  quite  popular,  sharing 
with  other  known  races  of  the  lay- 
ing type  the  favor  of  those  who 
preferred  fowls  of  that  type.  In 
disposition  they  are  more  nervous 
than  the  Leghorn  and  less  easily 
restrained.  In  general  they  have 
been  considered  as  good  layers  as 
Leghorns  though  producing  smaller 
eggs.  The  numbers  kept  now  are 
not  sufficient  to  afford  any  reliable 
indications  of  differences  in  laying  FIG.  369.  Silver-Spangled  Hamburg  pullet 
properties  in  the  varieties  of  Ham- 
burgs, if  there  are  such  differences.  The  spangled  varieties,  particularly  the  silver, 
are  very  plump  and  meaty  when  matured.  With  a  great  deal  of  merit,  they  are 
still  inferior  to  the  Mediterranean  races  of  their  type,  and  have  generally  been 
displaced  by  them  except  as  they  are  bred  by  fanciers  for  their  color  and  style. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       375 

Primitive  crested  types.  An  Asiatic  laying-type  fowl  known 
as  the  Siberian  Feather-Footed  is  found  in  Russia.  Almost  nothing 
is  known  of  its  history,  except  that  at  present  it  is  a  native  Siberian 
race.  If,  as  some  suppose,  it  is  a  very  old  race,  it  becomes  doubly 
interesting  as  the  possible  progenitor,  or  closely  related  to  the  pro- 
genitor, of  the  Polish  and  Hamburgs.  It  is  larger  than  the  ordinary 
Leghorn  (the  males  weighing  about  6  pounds  and  the  females  from 
4  to  4^  pounds)  and  has  the  full  form,  large  wings,  and  (in  the 
male)  flowing  tail  of  the  Polish  ;  it  has  feathered  legs  and  a  small 
rose  comb,  behind  which  is  a  small  crest ;  it  is  bearded  and  in 
color  is  generally  white  or  cuckoo. 

Pavloff  is  the  name  of  a  Russian  race,  akin  to  the  foregoing  and 
possibly  derived  from  it,  which  greatly  resembles  the  Polish.  This 
race  is  found  throughout  Russia  and  in  Poland.  It  has  the  forked 
comb  and  crest  of  the  Polish,  and  the  principal  varieties,,  the' 
Golden  and  the  Silver,  have  the  colors  and  color  pattern  of  the 
Spangled  Hamburgs.  While  the  two  color  types  mentioned  are 
best  established,  and  are  regarded  as  "pure,"  there  are  blacks 
and  blues,  regarded  as  varieties,  and  a  great  variety  of  unestab- 
lished  color  patterns.  The  race  has  not  been  studied  as  it  should 
be  before  any  positive  conclusions  as  to  its  relations  to  other  races 
are  drawn,  but  in  it  and  the  foregoing  are  found  (as  nowhere  else) 
suggestions  of  most  of  the  characteristics  of  native  European 
races  of  poultry  not  plainly  derivable  from  Mediterranean  and 
Game  stocks. 

For  a  long  time  after  their  introduction  into  England,  Polish 
were  called  Polands  or  Polanders.  The  White-Crested  Black  Polish 
seem  to  have  come  first  from  Holland  ;  and,  considering  what  is 
known  of  the  distribution  of  the  type,  it  may  reasonably  be  supposed 
that  their  present  name  was  the  one  which  they  bore  on  the  Con- 
tinent, and  which  indicated  the  country  of  their  supposed  origin.1 
Interest  in  this  variety  no  doubt  led  to  the  introduction  of  others, 
the  general  type  (as  has  been  shown)  having  been  common  on  the 

1  Various  explanations  of  the  name  are  given  on  the  theory  that  the  race  did 
not  come  from  Poland.  One  is  that  the  name  was  given  because  of  a  fancied  re- 
semblance between  the  crest  and  the  cap  of  the  Polish  soldier  ;  another,  that 
"  Polish  "  is  a  corruption  of  "  polled,"  and  that  the  intention  was  to  describe  them  as 
polled  fowls,  —  an  absurd  explanation,  since  the  type  is  quite  the  reverse  of  polled, 
but  it  has  been  seriously  given  times  without  number. 


376 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


continent  for  centuries.  Polish  are  as  large  as  medium-large  Leg- 
horns, but  are  of  plumper  form  and  shorter  in  the  leg.  In  dis- 
position they  are  quiet  and  gentle.  The  crest,  when  extremely 
large,  obstructs  the  sight  and  is  in  other  ways  a  burden  and  a 
nuisance,  making  it  necessary  to  give  the  birds  special  care  in 
wet  weather.  When  moderately  developed,  it  is  not  detrimental 
and,  to  eyes  to  which  the  symmetry  of  the  bird  as  a  whole  seems 
more  important  than  the  extreme  development  of  this  feature, 

may  seem  quite  as  handsome 
as  the  larger  crest.  Like  the 
Hamburgs,  Polish  were  in  favor 
as  layers  until  supplanted  by 
the  Leghorns.  The  American 
Standard  recognizes  five  color 
varieties,  in  three  of  which 
there  are  subvarieties  distin- 
guished as  bearded  or  non- 
bearded. 

White-Crested  Black  (non- 
bearded),  fully  described  as  to 
color  by  the  name. 

Golden  (bearded  and  non- 
bearded),  plumage  golden  bay, 
each  feather  laced  with  black. 
Silver  (bearded  and  non- 
bearded),  plumage  white,  each 
feather  laced  with  black. 

Buff  Laced  (nonbearded),  plumage  buff  laced  with  white. 
White  (bearded  and  nonbearded). 

Polverara  is  the  name  of  a  crested  race  (allied  to  Polish)  found 
in  the  province  of  Padua,  Italy,  which  is  probably  an  offshoot  of 
the  main  stock.  This  race  seems  to  have  been  somewhat  widely 
known  long  before  the  Leghorns  attracted  notice.  The  name 
"Padua"  was  often  applied  to  Polish  fowls  and  is  the  general 
name  still  given  them  in  western  continental  Europe. 

European  meat  types.  The  European  market  types  of  fowls 
might,  perhaps,  with  equal  accuracy  be  called  general-purpose  types, 
but  so  much  more  attention  has  been  given  to  perfecting  table 


FIG.  370.  White-Crested  Black  Polish 
(Photograph  from  owner,  Lionel  Lin- 
coln, Jr.,  Fall  River,  Massachusetts) 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       377 

quality  in  them  than  in  the  familiar  races  of  the  general-purpose 
type  that  "  meat  type  "  seems  the  more  appropriate  designation, 
especially  for  those  varieties  made  from  European  stocks  without 
recourse  to  the  Asiatic  blood  used  in  making  American  general- 
purpose  breeds.  These  European  meat  types  have  usually  been 
made  by  developing  the  size  and  meat  qualities  of  the  laying  types, 
-  in  some  cases  by  selection  and  feeding,  oftener  by  crossing,  but 
nearly  always  with  the  shape  of  the  laying  type  preserved.  This 
is  not  apparent 
when  the  largest, 
best-meated,  and 
fattest  of  the  meat 
type  are  compared 
with  the  ordinary 
specimens  of  the 
laying  type,  but 
comparison  of  large 
birds  of  the  laying 
type  with  medium- 
sized  or  small  ones 
of  the  meat  type  in 
the  same  condition 
of  flesh  will  show 
that  their  normal 
lines  are  much  the 
same,  even  though 
their  dimensions 

differ.  "Meat  type,"  however,  means  more  than  form  carrying 
abundance  of  meat.  Quality  of  meat  and  tendency  to  fatten  readily 
are  fully  as  important  as  shape. 

English  meat  types.  There  are  three  English  meat  types.  The 
principal  one  (and  the  one  most  distinctively  English)  is  that  of 
which  the  Dorking  is  the  favorite,  though  perhaps  not  the  earlier 
type.  This  type  is  plainly  related  to  the  Mediterranean  laying  type. 
The  others  are  the  Indian  Game  (already  described  as  a  modifica- 
tion of  the  Game  type  still  retaining  pronounced  Game  character) 
and  the  Redcap  (a  meat  type  of  the  Hamburgs).  The  English 
have  made  one  or  more  meat  breeds  of  each  of  the  conspicuous 


FIG.  371.    Bearded  Silver-Spangled  Polish.    (Photograph 
from  owner,  Lionel  Lincoln,  Jr.) 


378  POULTRY  CULTURE 

early  modifications  of  the  initial  type  of  the  domestic  fowl,  and,  as 
we  saw  in  the  case  of  the  Leghorn  and  Minorca,  and  shall  find  in 
the  modern  general-purpose  type,  the  English  tendency  is  to  de- 
velop the  meat  qualities  rather  than  the  laying  qualities  in  fowls. 

Sussex  fowls  (called  also  Surrey  fowls),  not  so  well  known  as 
the  Dorking,  are  probably  the  progenitors  of  that  breed.  The  an- 
tiquity sometimes  attributed  to  the  Dorking  rests  only  upon  a  tra- 
dition of  little  value,  and  upon  the  recent  finding,  in  Italy,  of  fowls 
with  the  characteristic  fifth  toe.  The  most  authentic  records  (going 
back  only  a  little  over  a  hundred  years)  indicate  that  the  Sussex 
was  the  earlier  type.  The  Sussex,  or  Surrey,  was  developed  as  a  con- 
spicuous type,  if  not  the  predominant  type,  in  the  counties  of  Sussex 
and  Surrey,  which  from  very  early  times  supplied  a  great  deal  of 
choice  table  poultry  to  the  city  of  London.  The  type  of  the  breed 
throughout  is  exactly  what  would  be  expected  of  Italian  fowls  bred 
for  centuries  for  the  table.  It  is  larger  and  better-meated  than  the 
English  style  of  Leghorn,  is  rather  short  of  feather  (suggesting 
occasional  Game  crosses),  has  a  medium-sized  single  comb,  and 
is  four-toed.  The  predominating  colors  are  red  brown,  and  yellow 
or  buff.  A  speckled  variety  (mottled  red,  black,  and  white)  and  a 
"  Light "  Sussex  (with  the  color  pattern  of  the  Light  Brahma)  are 
also  recognized.  These  are  the  modern  varieties.  The  Sussex  of 
the  middle  of  the  last  century  are  described  by  writers  of  that 
time  as  of  "  all  colors  "  and  mostly  four-toed. 

Dorking  fowls  seem  to  have  developed  as  a  strain  or  race  of 
the  Sussex  in  the  vicinity  of  the  town  of  Dorking.  Compared 
with  the  Sussex  they  present  a  more  highly  developed  table  type, 
having  the  fifth  toe  as  a  regular  feature,  and  having  different  color 
patterns  in  the  modern  breed.  In  the  middle  of  the  last  century 
they  were  of  quite  as  many  colors  as  the  Sussex.  There  are  three 
modern  varieties  of  the  Dorking,  —  the  Silver  Gray  (with  the 
black-white  color  pattern),  the  Colored,  or  "  Dark  "  (a  crude  and 
somewhat  irregular  variation  of  the  black-red  combination),  and 
the  White.  The  last-named  has  a  rose  comb,  is  smaller  than  the 
others,  and  lacks  much  of  the  characteristic  Dorking  size,  shape, 
and  carriage.  Typical  specimens  are  not  often  seen  in  America 
outside  of  drawings.  Red  and  Cuckoo,  or  Barred,  Dorkings  are 
also  occasionally  found  in  England. 


FIG.  372.    Silver-Gray  Dorking  cock.    (Photo- 
.graph  by  Graham) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      379 

The  typical  Dorking 
presents  highly  developed 
flesh  qualities  and  relatively 
fine  bone.  The  body  is  long, 
deep,  wide,  well  rounded, 
with  prominent  breast  and 
short  neck  and  legs,  mak- 
ing a  massive,  rather  low- 
set  bird.  Following  are 
the  American  Standard 
weights.  Colored :  cock, 
9  pounds ;  cockerel,  8 
pounds ;  hen,  7  pounds ; 
pullet,  6  pounds.  Silver- 
Gray  :  cock,  8  pounds ; 
cockerel,  7  pounds ;  hen, 
6|  pounds;  pullet,  5^- 
pounds.  White:  cock,  "]\ 
pounds;  cockerel,  6|  pounds;  hen,  6  pounds;  pullet,  5  pounds. 
In  the  two  first-named  varieties  the  standard  weights  are  often 
exceeded.  Dorkings  are 
generally  reputed  a  rather 
tender  race  and  indifferent 
or  poor  layers.  Their  good 
qualities  are  not  duly  ap- 
preciated because  of  sev- 
eral features  which  under 
some  conditions  are  objec- 
tionable. The  large  comb 
makes  the  male  especially 
unable  to  stand  severe 
cold  weather ;  the  fifth 
toe  somewhat  impedes  the 
movement^ of  the  feet;  in  FIG.  373.  Silver-Gray  Dorking  hen.  (Photo- 
America  the  white  skin  is  graph  by  Graham) 
a  disadvantage. 

Redcaps.   The  Redcap  is  a  meat  type  of  the  Hamburg  developed 
as  a  once-prevalent  type  of  poultry  in  Yorkshire  and  Derbyshire. 


38o 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


It  is  thought  to  have  been  produced  by  crossing  the  Golden-Spangled 
Hamburg  and  the  Black- Red  Game.  In  color  it  follows  the  Golden- 
Spangled  Hamburg  quite  closely.  The  shape  is  what  would  be  ex- 
pected in  a  larger,  coarser  type  of  Hamburg,  with  greater  breast 
development,  due  to  Game  blood.  American  Standard  weights  are 
cock,  *j\  pounds ;  cockerel,  6  pounds ;  hen,  6  pounds  ;  pullet,  5 
pounds.  The  comb  is  rose,  very  large,  and  gives  the  name  to  the 
breed.  The  skin  is  white,  the  legs  slate.  The  Redcap  has  long 

been  considered  one  of  the 
best-laying  breeds,  equal  to  the 
lighter-bodied  types  in  egg 
production,  and  in  meat  qual- 
ities superior  to  them,  though 
not  equal  to  races  developed 
more  with  a  view  to  table  qual- 
ities. It  is  rarely  seen  in  this 
country. 

French  and  Belgian  meat 
types.  The  market-type  fowls 
of  France  lack  something  of 
the  size  and  substance  of  such 
English  types  as  the  Dorking 

FIG.  374-   Colored  (or  Dark)  Dorking  hen     and  India11  Game'   With  SOme 
(Photograph  by  Graham)  modifications  of  the   form  of 

the  European  laying  types, 

and  with  occasional  traces  of  the  Game  type,  the  class  of  French 
table  fowls  represents  fineness  of  fiber  in  flesh  and  special  capacity 
for  forcing  for  market,  rather  than  development  of  size  and  quantity 
of  meat.  Most  of  these  races  have  been  developed  in  the  districts 
from  which  they  take  their  names. 

Bresse.  In  the  south  of  France  there  has  been  developed  a  race 
called  the  Bresse,  closely  resembling  the  Leghorn  but  with  a  re- 
markable tendency  to  fatten.  It  is  bred  in  four  color  varieties, 
White,  Black,  Gray,  and  Blue. 

La  Flhhe.  In  this  race  we  have  the  extreme  development  of  meat 
properties  on  a  foundation  of  European  laying-type  stock  as  pro- 
duced in  France.  With  weight  approximating  that  of  the  Dorking, 
it  is  a  higher-stationed,  more  stylish-looking  fowl.  It  is  thought 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       381 

to  have  been  produced  by  a  blending  of  Spanish  and  Polish  blood. 
The  color  is  black,  and  the  high  station  suggests  the  Spanish.  The 
peculiar  comb,  with  two  prongs,  or  horns,  suggests  a  Polish  strain. 
There  is  a  similar  race,  Du  Mans,  with  rose  comb.  The  two  are 
probably  akin,  but  their  relations  are  not  known.  The  rose  comb 
of  the  latter  indicates  a  Hamburg  cross.  As  has  been  shown,  the 
Minorca  (Spanish)  in  England  and  America  has  been  brought  to 
a  large  size  without  special  development  of  table  qualities.  It  may 
readily  be  supposed  that  Spanish  stock  in  France,  mingled  with 
Polish  and  Hamburg,  gave  in  one  place  the  forked-combed  La 
Fleche  and  in  another  the  rose-combed  Du  Mans,  and  that  in 
breeding  for  market  the  large  size  and  readiness  to  put  on  flesh 
and  fat  were  developed  without  recourse  to  other  crosses.  American 
Standard  weights  for  La  Fleche  are  cock,  8^  pounds ;  cockerel, 
7j  pounds  ;  hen,  7^  pounds;  pullet,  61  pounds.  It  is  said  that  in 
France  the  weights  often  exceed  i  o  pounds  for  males  and  8  pounds 
for  females.  La  Fleche  fowls  are  rarely  seen  in  America. 

Houdan,  Crtvecceur,  and  Mantes,  are  similar  races,  the  first  two 
developed,  apparently,  from  a  Polish  foundation,  the  other  from 
the  Polish  or  Houdan  by  blending  with  a  single-combed  type.  It 
has  been  suggested  that  the  Bresse  may  have  been  used  for  this. 
The  Houdan  is  in  appearance  a  black-and-white  mottled,  bearded 
Polish,  with  a  strain  of  Dorking  blood,  giving  greater  length  and 
massiveness  of  body  and  the  characteristic  fifth  toe.  The  Creve- 
cceur  is  a  fowl  of  the  same  size  and  type  but  black  in  color  and 
without  the  fifth  toe.  The  Mantes  has  the  mottled  plumage  of  the 
Houdan,  lacks  the  fifth  toe,  and  has  a  single  comb  and  no  crest. 
All  these  so-called  breed  differences  are  superficial,  —  just  such 
differences  as  variations  in  ideas  of  breeders  in  different  localities 
would  be  likely  to  make  in  a  type  developed  for  the  same  purpose 
on  the  same  body  lines.  The  Houdan  is  well  known  and  well  dis- 
tributed in  America  ;  the  Crevecceur,  rare  ;  the  Mantes,  unknown. 
Following  are  the  American  Standard  weights  for  these  races. 
Houdans  :  cock,  7  pounds  ;  cockerel,  6  pounds  ;  hen,  6  pounds  ; 
pullet,  5  pounds.  Crevecceurs :  cock,  8  pounds ;  cockerel,  7  pounds ; 
hen,  7  pounds ;  pullet,  6  pounds.  These  weights  are  often  ex- 
ceeded. The  Houdan  in  this  country  presents  considerable  differ- 
ences in  size  and  shape.  Some  strains  are  small  and  light-bodied, 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

others  quite  as  large  as  Dor- 
kings, but  most  are  of  an  in- 
termediate type.  They  are  not 
usually  bred  with  extreme  de- 
velopment of  crest  and  beard, 
yet  most  exhibition  stocks  have 
more  of  these  than  is  desirable 
in  fowls  bred  for  use.  In  the 
Houdan  district  of  France  the 
crests  are  smaller  and  the  birds 
better  adapted  to  ordinary  con- 
ditions. Houdans  are  as  good 
layers  as  any  breed  and  make 
excellent  poultry.  The  color 
of  the  skin  and  legs  is  against 
them  in  this  country. 

French  Cuckoo.  A  variation 
of  the  Friesland-Campine- 
Hamburg  type,  developed  in 
Brittany,  with  the  rose  comb 

prevailing  in  the  north  and  the  single  comb  in  the  south,  is  called 

French  Cuckoo.    The  size  and  weight  of  the  body  are  increased 

and  the  neck  and   legs  shortened, 

yet  without  giving  the  bird  a  squat 

appearance. 

Courtes  Pattes  (Creepers).    This 

is  a  single-comb  black  fowl  remark- 
able for  delicacy  of  flesh.    In  size 

they  approach  the  Bantams, — the 

males  weighing  from  3  to  4  pounds, 

and    the    females    from    2j  to   3^ 

pounds.     It    is    thought   that   they 

may   have   been    derived   from   the 

Bresse. 

Braekel.    According  to  the  best 

Belgian  authority  this  is  simply  the 

Campine  growing  to  a  larger  size      FlG.376.  Houdan  pullet.  (Photo- 

in   the    vicinity    of    Nederbrakel,    in       graph  from  owner,  C.  E.  Petersen) 


FIG.  375.    American  type  Houdan  cock- 
erel. (Photograph  from  owner,  C.  E.Peter- 
sen,  Pembroke,  Maine) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       383 


FIG.  377.  Houdanhen.  (Photograph 
from  owner,  C.  E.  Petersen) 


Flanders,  the  conditions  being 
more  favorable  there  than  on  the 
sandy  plains  of  the  Campine  coun- 
try. Putting  together  this  view  and 
the  apparent  kinship  of  the  Fries- 
land  and  Campine,  the  Friesland 
appears  as  the  intermediate  (and 
probably  earlier)  type,  of  which  the 
common  Campine  is  a  deteriorated 
and  the  Braekel  an  improved  off- 
shoot. The  Braekel  males  weigh 
from  5  to  7  pounds,  females  from 
4^  to  6  pounds.  In  shape  the  body 
approaches  the  Dorking  (as  does  the 
body  of  a  Leghorn  of  like  weight). 
The  Braekel  greatly  resembles  the  Leghorn  in  appearance  and 
qualities.  It  is  precocious,  a  good  layer,  and  indeed  so  like  a  large 
Hamburg  or  Leghorn  that  the  only  warrant  for  placing  it  in  the 
meat  instead  of  the  laying  class  is  the  fact  that  for  a  long  time  it 
has  been  bred  with  special 
reference  to  the  production 
of  the  celebrated  poulets 
de  grains  (corresponding 
to  our  broilers).  The  lead- 
ing varieties  of  the  Braekel 
are  the  Golden  and  the  Sil- 
ver, the  colors  and  mark- 
ings of  these  being  the 
same  as  for  the  correspond- 
ing varieties  of  Campines, 
except  that  the  ground  of 
the  Silver  Braekel  is  a 
creamy  white. 

Brabant.  TheBrabantis 
a  large-bodied,  fine-boned 
fowl  of  the  Polish  type, 
occupying  about  the  same 


position    among    Belgian 


FIG.  378.    Houdan  cock.    (Photograph  from 
owner,  C.  E.  Petersen) 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  379.    Silver  Braekel  cockerel.    (Photograph  from 
owner,  Thomas  Keeler,  Waverly,  New  York) 


races  as  the  Houdan 
and  similar  breeds 
in  France. 

The  Asiatic  meat 
type.  It  has  been 
shown  that  in  south- 
eastern Asia  there 
was  developed  a 
large,  coarse  type 
of  game  fowl  —  the 
Malay  —  which  more 
than  a  hundred  years 
ago  found  its  way  to 
Britain  and  was  used 
there  later  to  make 
the  Indian  Game.  It 
has  also  been  stated 
that  fowls  -brought 

from  Asia  began  to  be  exploited,  about  the  middle  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, by  men  who  claimed  to  have  introduced  them  from  the  Orient, 
and  the  public  became  interested  in 
them  ;  but  at  the  same  time  it  was 
found  that  there  were  many  such 
fowls  in  America,  particularly  in 
New  England. 

On  the  assumption  that  the  Asi- 
atic races,  —  the  Cochin,  Brahma, 
and  Langshan,  —  as  now  known 
and  bred  in  America  and  England, 
are  distinct  breeds  of  different 
origin,  coming  from  different  parts 
of  China  and  India,  there  has 
been,  since  the  public  first  began 
to  be  interested  in  them,  a  long 
series  of  controversies  as  to  origin, 
precise  dates  of  importations,  cor- 
rect types,  etc.  All  this  has  tended  to  cloud  the  facts. 


FIG.  380.     Silver    Eraekel    pullet 

(Photograph  from  owner,  Thomas 

Keeler,  Waverly,  New  York) 


Having 
seen  how  in  the  European  races  the  differentiation  of  breeds  and 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       385 

varieties  has  been  largely  the  work  of  English  and  American 
fanciers,  the  student  of  the  subject  can  at  once  see  the  reason- 
ableness of  supposing  that  precisely  the  same  thing  is  true  of  the 
Asiatic  races.  The  present  resemblances  between  these  races 
indicate  very  close  relationship.  Resemblances  between  earlier 
types  —  even  types  familiar  to  men  still  under  middle  age  — 
confirm  this  view.  An  examination  of  old  descriptions  and  pic- 
tures brings  the  types  still  closer  together.  The  testimony  of 
early  breeders  as  to  the  instability  of  color  and  comb  shows  plainly 
the  condition  of  the  stock  for  some  time  after  the  type  began 
to  be  popular.  And,  finally,  a  description  of  the  type  as  "one  of 
the  usual  breeds  or  races  raised  in  the  United  States  "  was  pub- 
lished in  "The  American  Poultry  Book"  in  1843,  —  two  years 
before  the  first  importation  of  Shanghais  from  China  to  England, 
and  three  years  before  the  first  importation  of  "  Brahmaputras  " 
to  the  United  States.  The  race,  at  that  time  called  Malay,  is  thus 
described  :  "  This  is  the  largest  of  our  breeds.  Dampier  says  that 
he  saw  one  of  this  breed  so  large,  that,  standing  on  the  floor,  it 
picked  up  crumbs  from  the  table.  They  are  mostly  yellowish  or 
reddish  brown.  The  eggs  are  large  and  well-flavored.  The  flesh 
of  the  chicken  is  not  very  delicate,  and  is  better  adapted  to  broth 
than  anything  else  ;  in  the  adult  it  is  coarse  and  stringy.  They 
make  large  capons,  but  are  considered  to  be  very  indifferent  layers 
and  not  very  steady  sitters." 

This  description  fits  the  Yellow  Shanghai,  the  progenitor  of  the 
modern  Buff  Cochin,  very  much  better  than  it  does  the  Malay  Game. 
Though  the  Asiatics  have  the  reputation  of  being  most  persistent 
sitters,  the  broody  quality  is  by  no  means  universal  in  the  race,  and 
there  are  other  descriptions  of  the  early  types  which  agree  with 
this.  It  is  to  be  noted  also  that  while  buff  or  brown  is  given  as 
the  prevailing  tone  of  color,  the  description  implies  a  variety  of 
colors,  and  this  is  in  accord  with  the  statements  of  other  writers  a 
few  years  later.  It  is  not  necessary  here  to  go  into  an  extended 
analysis  of  these  statements.  Together  they  establish  a  probability 
that  the  Asiatic  type,  called  in  America  and  Europe  by  a  variety 
of  names,  was  a  common  fowl  over  a  wide  area  of  Asia,  and  that 
the  type,  though  found  in  parts  of  India,  was  probably  first  developed 
by  the  Chinese.  What  is  known  of  the  development  of  other  types 


386  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  poultry  confirms  this  view.  It  may  seem  a  comparatively  easy 
matter  to  settle  such  a  question  beyond  dispute  by  a  study  of  the 
poultry  of  Asia,  but  the  expense  of  such  investigation  is  too  great 
for  private  enterprise. 

Compared  with  the  Malay  Game  type,  with  which  it  was  some- 
times confounded,  the  early  Asiatic  was  such  a  fowl  as  would 
develop  from  the  same  stock  or  (more  easily)  from  an  intermediate 
type,  by  general  selection  for  size  and  constitution.  While  they  had 
longer  plumage  than  the  European  races,  they  had  not  the  excessive 
development  of  feather  which  characterizes  the  modern  Exhibition 
Cochin  and  Brahma.  The  legs  and  feet  were  only  moderately  or 
scantily  feathered, —  sometimes  quite  bare.  The  combs  were  some- 
times single,  sometimes  triple  (pea  combs).  There  were  no  striking 
developments  of  comb  or  crest.  The  colors  were  much  the  same  as 
in  the  Leghorns  in  Italy, — 'of  the  same  variety  but  with  yellow  or 
red-brown  shades  most  popular.  As  in  Italy,  no  effort  was  made 
to  develop  elaborate  color  patterns.  While  the  colors  were  various,  it 
appears  that  by  local  preference  some  color  varieties  had  been  out- 
lined and  somewhat  developed ;  but  much  of  the  stock  was,  so  far 
as  color  went,  in  a  condition  of  mongrelism.  To  Americans  and 
Europeans  the  feathers  on  the  legs  and  feet  were,  after  size,  the  most 
striking  characteristic,  and  it  has  been  generally  assumed  that  the 
Chinese  made  special  efforts  to  develop  this  character ;  but  as  the 
quantity  of  foot  feathering  on  the  Asiatic  type  as  developed  in  Asia 
was  no  greater  than  would  naturally  be  correlated  with  a  rather  heavy 
plumage,  this  type  may  properly  be  considered  a  strictly  utility 
type,  especially  adapted  to  cold  regions  and,  because  of  its  greater 
ruggedness  and  vitality,  growing  (under  favorable  conditions)  larger 
than  the  European  races  approaching  it  in  size.  While  great  size 
was  the  most  conspicuous  race  character,  many  specimens  de- 
scribed by  early  American  writers  were  medium  or  even  small  in 
size.  In  a  general  way  they  might  be  considered  the  opposites  of 
the  European  laying  race  as  most  typically  developed  in  the  Leg- 
horn. They  were  developed  in  the  opposite  direction  not  only 
for  shape  but  for  color  of  eggs,  laying  dark-brown  eggs,  as  did  the 
Malay  Game.  In  flesh  qualities  they  were  superior  to  the  Leghorn 
only  in  quantity  of  meat;  the  quality  of  the  flesh  was  similar, 
though  the  meat  of  the  Asiatics  was  coarser  in  fiber. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       387 

Divisions  of  the  Asiatic  meat  type.  The  modern  classification 
of  Asiatic  fowls  makes  three  breeds,  —  Brahma,  Cochin,  and  Lang- 
shan, —  the  order  of  mention  being  in  accord  with  the  relative 
popularity  of  the  breeds  when  the  type  was  most  popular.  With 
reference  to  the  (supposed)  original  type  of  fowl  the  Cochin  and 
Langshan  are  earlier  forms,  the  comb  and  some  other  characters 
of  the  Brahma  indicating 
Asiatic  Game  blood  which 
undoubtedly  mingled  with 
the  other  race  from  time 
to  time. 

Cochins.  Early  Ameri- 
can and  English  Cochins 
comprised  four  colors  of 
the  Asiatic  type,  and  (in  at 
least  one  of  these  colors) 
a  variety  of  shades.  The 
Buff  Cochin,  developed 
from  the  most  common 
and  popular  color  of  the 
Shanghai  or  Malay,  was, 
until  near  the  close  of 
the  last  century,  bred  and 
shown  in  all  shades  of  buff, 
from  a  lemon-yellow  to  a 


FIG.  381.    Buff  Cochin  cockerel.   (Photograph 
by  Eugene  J.  Hall,  Oak  Park,  Illinois) 


brown  called  cinnamon- 
buff.  In  these  Buff  Cochins 
were  found,  as  nowhere 

else  among  the  fowls  that  came  to  the  notice  of  early  American 
fanciers,  the  gradations  of  color  from  the  black-red  of  the  initial 
type  to  white.  The  Pheasant  or  Partridge  Cochin  retained  the 
black-red  coloration,  with  the  brown  colors  of  the  female  arranged 
in  lacings,  —  a  pattern  which  seems  to  have  been  developed  in 
Asia,  though  not  in  the  perfection  in  which  it  is  now  found  in 
our  exhibition  stocks  of  varieties  carrying  the  pattern.  At  the 
lower  end  of  the  scale  of  Asiatic  colors  was  the  White  Cochin ; 
at  the  upper  end,  the  Black  Cochin,  commonly  called  the  Java. 
Of  these  varieties  the  Buff  was,  from  the  first,  most  popular,  the 


388 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  382.    Buff  Cochin  cock.   (Photograph 

from  owners,Tienken  and  Case,  Rochester, 

Michigan) 


Partridge  next  but  far  behind, 
the  Black  and  the  White  com- 
paratively rare,  though  before 
the  appearance  of  the  Lang- 
shan  the  Black  Cochin  (some- 
times under  that  name  and 
sometimes  as  the  Java)  seems 
to  have  been  widely  distributed. 
In  shape  the  modern  Cochin 
of  the  exhibition  type  differs 
greatly  from  the  early  Asiatic 
type.  In  this  division  of  the 
Asiatics  the  development  of 
feathers  on  the  body  and  feet 
has  been  carried  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, making  the  birds  (the 
hens  especially)  appear  like  big 
balls  of  feathers.  To  heighten 

this  effect  the  neck  and  the  legs  have  been  somewhat  shortened, 

though  not  as   much  as  appears, 

for  a  part  of  the  apparent  short- 
ness of  extremities  is  due  to  the 

length,  abundance,  and  loose,  fluffy 

character  of  the  plumage.    In  the 

most  heavily  feathered  specimens 

the  shank  is  completely  covered 

with  feathers,  on  both  inner  and 

outer  sides.  Although  the  feathers 

on  the  body  and  feet  are  abundant, 

the  tail  and  wing  feathers  are  much 

shortened.  The  American  Stand- 
ard weights  for  Cochins  are  cock, 

1 1   pounds  ;  cockerel,  9  pounds  ; 

hen,  81-  pounds  ;  pullet,  7  pounds. 

These  weights  are  often  exceeded.1   The  comb  is  single  ;  it  is  small 

in  the  females  and,  preferably,  also  in  the  males,  though  it  is  not 

*I  have  had   Buff  Cochin  cocks  weigh  as  high  as  14  pounds,  and  credible 
reports  give  16  and  17   pounds  as  extreme  heavy  weights. 


FIG.  383.    Buff  Cochin  hen.    (Photo- 
graph from  owners,  Tienken  and  Case) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       389 

unusual  to  see  males  with  quite  large  combs.  The  wattles  corre- 
spond in  size  with  the  comb.  The  ear  lobes  are  red.  The  color  of 
the  modern  Buff  Cochin,  described  as  "  golden  buff,"  is  between 
the  light  and  the  intermediate  shades  of  earlier  times.  In  the  eastern 
United  States  the  tendency  of  judges  has  been  to  favor  a  very 
light  buff,  while  farther  west  and  in  Canada  a  richer  shade  has  been 
preferred.  In  the  male,  the  Partridge  Cochin  has  the  same  colors 
and  pattern  as  the  Brown  Leghorn,  but  in  the  female  the  ground 
is  a  uniform  bay  or  mahogany  red  (varying  in  different  specimens) 
penciled  with  dark  brown  or  black,  the  object  being  to  secure  uni- 
formity of  shade  and  clear,  distinct  penciling  throughout.  The  main 
tail  feathers  are  black,  the  wing  primaries  dark  brown.  The  black 
and  white  varieties  heed  not  be  described  for  color. 

For  utility  purposes  the  exhibition  type  of  Cochin  is  of  little 
value.  For  many  years  after  the  stock  in  fanciers'  hands  had  ceased 
to  be  suitable  for  practical  poultry  keepers,  there  were  here  and 
there  throughout  the  country  utility  Cochins  equal  to  (and  pos- 
sibly better  than)  the  best  of  the  early  importations.  It  is  possible 
that  a  few  such  flocks  still  remain,  but  if  so  they  are  not  known 
beyond  their  own  neighborhoods. 

Black  Langs hans.  Black  Asiatic  fowls  with  single  combs  were 
introduced  to  poultrymen  as  Langshans  in  the  early  seventies. 
They  came  to  England  first,  from  the  Langshan  district  in  China. 
The  importer  and  promoter  claimed  for  them  distinct  breed  char- 
acteristics plainly  differentiating  them  from  other  Asiatic  races. 
High  station,  great  depth  of  body,  erect  carriage  of  head  and  tail, 
short  plumage,  scantily  feathered  feet,  and  white  or  gray  skin,  with 
the  legs  and  toes  slatish  and  the  soles  of  the  feet  a  pinkish  white, 
gave  enough  breed  characters,  in  the  ordinary  interpretation  of 
that  term,  to  mark  the  Langshan  as  a  separate  breed.  As  the  Lang- 
shan began  to  attract  notice,  Black  Cochins  were  adapted  to  Lang- 
shan standards,  some  by  introducing  the  blood  of  the  new  race, 
others  by  selection  toward  the  adopted  Langshan  type.  In  England, 
between  the  advocates  of  the  tall,  Langshan  type  and  the  "  Cochiny  " 
type,  there  has  been  continuous  controversy  down  to  the  present 
time.  As  a  result  those  who  bred  away  from  the  Cochin  type  pro- 
duced an  extremely  tall,  stilted  type,  without  beauty  and  with  little 
utility  value.  In  America  the  race  is  bred  more  on  the  lines  of 


390 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  384.    Black   Langshan  cock,  owned  by 

Urban  Farms,  Pine  Ridge,  Buffalo,  New  York 

(Photograph  by  Schilling) 


Birds  from  i  to  2  pounds  over 
these  weights  are  not  unusual. 
In  general  the  Langshan  of 
exhibition  type  in  this  country 
preserves  more  of  the  character 
of  the  Asiatic  type  at  its  best 
than  either  the  Cochin  or  the 
Brahma.  Had  it  not  been  for 
the  erroneous  conception  of 
breed  character  that  demanded 
the  preservation  of  the  color 
of  skin  and  feet  against  which 
people  in  the  United  States  are 
prejudiced,  the  Black  Langshan 
might  have  become  very  popu- 
lar here.  It  is  a  hardy  fowl  and 
an  excellent  layer  of  the  darkest 


the  Langshans  as  they 
first  came  from  the  Lang- 
shan district.  In  that  dis- 
trict the  Black  Langshan, 
though  modified  in  many 
characters,  is  plainly  a 
local  black  variety  of  the 
common  Asiatic  type. 

White  Langshans  are 
said  to  have  come  as  sports 
from  the  black  variety  in 
England.  A  blue  variety 
of  Langshans  was  made 
in  America  by  crossing 
Blacks  and  Whites,  but  it 
has  attracted  little  atten- 
tion. American  Standard 
weights  for  Langshans  are 
cock,  10  pounds ;  cock- 
erel, 8  pounds ;  hen,  7 
pounds  ;  pullet,  6  pounds. 


FIG.  385.  Black  Langshan  hen,  owned  by 
Urban  Farms.  (Photograph  by  Schilling) 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OE  FOWLS       391 


of  brown  eggs.  The  White 
Langshan,  too,  adapted  to 
our  requirements,  .  might 
easily  have  fitted  into  the 
place  which  the  perversion 
of  Brahma  type  was  mak- 
ing vacant,  and,  for  a  period 
at  least,  might  have  been 
of  considerable  economic 
importance. 

Brahmas.  Among  the 
early  Asiatic  fowls  in  Amer- 
ica were  some  gray  birds. 
We  have  seen  that  in  the. 
Cochins  the  modern  fancier 
retained  the  black-red  color 
pattern  and  developed  three 
plain  colors,  —  buff,  black, 
and  white.  During  the 
period  when  names  were 
used  with  little  discrimination  the  gray  color  types  went  by  various 
Asiatic  names,  such  as  Gray  Chittagong,  Brahmaputra,  Cochin 
China,  etc.  As  known  in  Amer- 
ica and  England  for  over  half  a 
century  the  Brahma  has  had  two 
color  patterns  described  as  "light" 
and  "dark,"  these  descriptions 
giving  the  names  "  Light  Brahma" 
and  "  Dark  Brahma,"  by  which  the 
varieties  are  designated.  The  his- 
tory of  the  Light  Brahma  in  this 
country  is  given  with  great  cir- 
cumstantiality as  beginning  with 
the  finding,  by  a  fancier,  of  speci- 
mens of  the  breed  on  a  sailing 
vessel  in  New  York  harbor.  This 

is   entirely  credible  but  does  not     ,-, 

<  FIG.  387.  White  Langshan  hen.  (Pho- 

prove  or  even  indicate  that  the       tograph  from  owner,  Paul  p.  Ives) 


FIG.  386.    White   Langshan  cock.    (Photo- 
graph from  owner,  Paul  P.  Ives,  Guilford, 
Connecticut) 


392 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  388.    Dark  Brahma  cock.    (Photograph 
from  F.W.Rogers,  Brockton,  Massachusetts) 


specimens  had  fixed  breed 
character.  The  most  that 
may  be  inferred  from  the 
fact  is  that  several  speci- 
mens more  or  less  closely 
approximating  this  attrac- 
tive color  pattern  were 
found  in  a  lot  of  fowls  on 
the  vessel.  Both  printed 
and  oral  accounts  of  early 
breeders  of  Asiatics  agree 
that  the  reproduction  of 
color  was  uncertain  and, 
further,  that  the  type  of 
comb  was  not  fixed.  Light 
and  Dark  Brahmas  came 
from  the  same  parents, 
and  with  them,  sometimes, 
came  fowls  of  other  colors. 
Some  of  the  fowls  had 
single  combs,  but  the  pea 


comb  seems  to  have  been  most  prevalent,  and,  being  a  feature 

which   might  be  used  to   make 

differentiation    between    Cochin 

and  Brahma  more  pronounced, 

was  adopted  as  the  correct  type 

of  comb. 

Dark  Brahmas.  While  the 
Light  Brahma  was  from  the  first 
more  popular  than  the  Dark,  and 
consequently  came  to  be  regarded 
as  the  principal  variety,  it  is 
through  the  dark  variety  that  it  is 
most  plainly  connected  with  the 
Cochin  forms  of  the  type.  But 
for  its  pea  comb  the  Dark  Brahma 


is  a  Silver-Penciled  Cochin, a 

Partridge  Cochin  changed  from 


FIG.  389.    Dark  Brahma  hen.    (Photo- 
graph from  F.  W.  Rogers) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      393 


the  black-red  to  the  black- 
white  type  of  coloration, 
and  still  showing,  in  all 
but  a  few  rare  specimens, 
traces  of  brown  or  red 
throughout  the  plumage. 
The  comb  is  an  immaterial 
point,  for  not  only  were 
Brahmas  at  first  produced 
with  both  pea  combs  and 
single  combs,  but  also  a 
pea-combed  variety  of  the 
Partridge  Cochin  was  rec- 
ognized in  the  American 
Standard  as  late  as  1887. 
The  Dark  Brahma  of  to- 

FiG-390.  Light  Brahma  cockerel.  (Photograph     day,   without   the    extreme 
from  owner,  Frank  C.  Nutter,  South  Portland,     heavy     feathering     of     the 

Maine)  .     Cochin,    is    bred    to    the 

same  standards  for  weight,  and  is*  plainly  an  intermediate  between 
the  Cochins  and  the  Light  Brahma. 

Light  Brahma.  Without  prejudice  to  other  varieties  of  its 
general  type  the  Light  Brahma 
may  be  described  as  (from  the 
American  point  of  view)  the 
highest  development  of  that 
type.  Exceeding  its  nearest  of 
kin  in  size,  it  is  the  largest 
variety  of  the  domestic  fowl. 
Its  color  pattern  is  the  sim- 
plest and  at  the  same  time 
the  most  striking  color  combi- 
nation found  on  fowls.  While 
its  size  and  general  appearance 
(leaving  the  comb  out  of  con- 
sideration) connect  it  with  the 
Cochins,  it  is  probable  that  FlG  ^  Light  Brahma  pullet  (photo. 

the  comb  came  from  an  Aseel          graph  from  owner,  Frank  C.  Nutter) 


394 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


cross.  The  color  pattern,  though  long  peculiar  to  the  Brahma 
among  American  Standard-bred  fowls,  is  one  that  occurs  often  in 
mongrel  fowls  and  must  have  appeared  times  without  number  in 
the  evolution  of  every  race  which,  for  any  considerable  period, 
was  of  various  colors.  Compared  with  the  color  of  the  Dark 
Brahma,  the  color  pattern  of  the  Light  Brahma  represents  the  almost 
complete  elimination  of  black  from  the  body  plumage,  while  the 
tail  remains  black,  the  wings  black  and  white  (the  black  or  black- 
and-white  flights  concealed  when  the  wing  is  folded),  and  the 
hackle  retains  the  black  stripe.  The  early  Light  Brahmas  had  not 
excessive  feather  development,  nor  did  that  feature  become  seri- 
ously detrimental  to  the  variety  until  about  the  close  of  the  last 
century.  American  Standard  weights  for  Light  Brahmas  are  cock, 
12  pounds  ;  cockerel,  10  pounds  ;  hen,  9^  pounds  ;  pullet,  8  pounds. 
The  Standard  weights  for  adults  are  often  exceeded  in  birds  much 
under  a  year  old. 

NOTE.  Though  not  adapted  to  the  general  requirements  of  poultry  culture 
in  America,  the  Asiatic  meat  type,  until  spoiled  by  breeding  for  extreme  feather 
development,  occupied  an  important  position.  It  was  the  most  satisfactory  type 
for  the  production  of  large  roasting  cMickens,  and  when  properly  handled,  laid 
as  well  as  any  other.  It  was  best  suited  to  northerly  latitudes  and  well-drained 
soils,  and  to  men  with  skill  and  judgment  in  handling  poultry.  This  class  was 
dependent  for  popularity  upon  the  fanciers  to  a  much  greater  extent  than  the 
laying  and  general-purpose  classes.  As  long  as  the  fanciers  preserved  a  useful 
type,  their  cull  specimens  (particularly  of  the  Light  Brahma)  were  much  sought 
by  market  poultry  growers.  When  the  fanciers  developed  the  type  beyond 
utility  lines,  they  lost  the  market  for  their  culls ;  the  poultry  growers  who  had 
become  dependent  on  them  for  stock  were  unable  to  procure  what  they  needed, 
and  turned  to  other  breeds.  There  is  still  in  the  country  a  great  deal  of  Light 
Brahma  stock  good  for  practical  purposes,  but  it  is  widely  scattered.  Some 
effort  is  being  made  to  bring  back  the  old  types  of  Asiatics.  How  successful 
such  an  effort  may  be,  only  time  can  show. 

General-purpose  types.  While  the  credit  of  developing  the  mod- 
ern general-purpose  type  of  fowl  belongs  principally  to  American 
poultry  keepers,  in  a  sense  every  effort  to  improve  utility  qualities 
represents  progress  toward  the  combination  of  laying  and  table 
qualities.  The  European  meat  types,  as  developed  from  European 
laying  types,  are  as  good  layers  as  their  progenitors,  and  much  better 
fleshed.  The  Asiatic  meat  type,  while  carrying  more  meat  than 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       395 

most  varieties  of  the  European,  but  generally  of  inferior  quality, 
were  (with  good  handling)  quite  as  productive  of  eggs  as  any  other 
type.  But  the  European  fowls  as  a  whole  lacked  the  rugged  vitality 
of  the  Asiatics,  and  almost  without  exception  had  some  superficial 
feature  to  which  the  plainly  practical  American  farmer  objected. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  Asiatics  were  not  only  inclined  to  coarse- 
ness in  flesh,  but  were  heavy-boned  and  much  larger  than  was 
desirable  for  general-market  or  necessary  for  laying  purposes. 

Consequently  (as  stated  in  Chapter  II)  acquaintance  with  the 
races  of  poultry  as  improved  in  Europe  and  Asia  moved  poultry 
keepers  in  America  to  efforts  to  combine  these  different  types  with 
one  another  or  with  native  stocks  in  order  to  produce  medium-sized 
fowls  of  plain  type,  of  great  vigor,  and  adapted  to  a  wide  range  of 
conditions.  While  these  efforts  were  greatly  stimulated  by  the  ex- 
ploitation of  the  Asiatic  type,  that  they  began  much  earlier  is  evi- 
dent from  the  references  to  the  old  Hawk-Colored,  or  Dominique, 
fowls,  and  from  the  fact  that  at  least  two  breeds  (the  Bucks  County 
Fowls  and  the  Jersey  Blue),  formed  by  combining  Asiatic  and 
native  blood,  had  acquired  a  name  and  a  more  than  local  reputation 
before  the  first  exhibition  in  1849. 

Early  gray-barred  types  is  the  most  appropriate  general  descrip- 
tion of  the  color  prototypes  of  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock.  The 
color  type  is  a  common  one,  the  patterns  occurring  in  all  races  in 
which  (or  at  the  stage  when)  plumage  colors  are  various.  Fowls  of 
this  color  pattern  went  by  different  names.  They  were  sometimes 
described  as  hawk-colored.  They  were  called  Dominique,  and  also 
by  several  variations  of  that  name,  —  Dominick,  Dominiker,  Domin- 
ican. They  were  called,  too,  Cuckoo  Prowls.  In  many  cases  these 
names  were  given  on  account  of  color,  without  reference  to  other 
points  (just  as  later  every  barred  fowl  was  called  a  Plymouth  Rock), 
but  it  is  quite  probable  that  some  of  them  were  of  a  race  with 
other  characteristics  somewhat  fixed.  Some  early  American  writers 
on  the  Dominique  say  that  it  was  introduced  from  France.  As  the 
best  type  shown  in  illustrations  of  the  period  conforms  generally 
to  the  description  of  the  French  Cuckoo,  it  seems  highly  probable 
that  that  race  was  the  most  important  factor  in  fixing  the  type  of 
the  American  Dominique,  and  that  the  American  Dominique  is 
no  more  American  than  the  Leghorn  or  the  Cochin. 


39^ 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  392.    Dominique  cockerel.    (Photograph 

from   owner,   W.   H.  Davenport,    Coleraine, 

Massachusetts) 


Doniiniques,  as  devel- 
,  oped  either  by  amalgama- 
tion of  early  barred  types 
or  by  preference  for  the 
type  which  became  fixed 
and  dominant,  were  small 
medium-sized  fowls  with 
rose  combs.  In  shape  and 
carriage  they  resembled 
Hamburgs  and  Leghorns, 
though  more  substantially 
built.  They  were  rugged 
and  hardy,  good  layers, 
fattened  well,  and  made 
good  table  poultry.  The 
males  were  much  lighter 
in-  color  than  Standard 
Barred  Rock  males  of  to- 
day, more  resembling  the 

pullet-bred  Barred  Rock  male.    The  principal  difference  between 
them  and  the  French  Cuckoo  is  the  color  of  the  skin. 

This  type  of  Dominique  has 
almost  disappeared.  With  few  ex- 
ceptions, the  type  now  closely  ap- 
proximates the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  in  shape  as  well  as  in  general 
shade  of  color.  The  barring  is  not 
so  clear  as  that  of  the  Plymouth 
Rock,  and  the  birds  are  smaller, 
American  Standard  weights  being 
cock,  8 pounds;  cockerel,  /pounds; 
hen,  6  pounds  ;  pullet,  5  pounds. 
Efforts  made  from  time  to  time  to 
revive  the  popularity  of  the  Domi- 
nique have  usually  been  based  on 
claims  of  inherent  breed  qualities 
superior  to  those  of  the  Plymouth  Rock,  but  have  met  with  little 
success.  Though  rated  a  hardy  fowl  in  comparison  with  the 


FIG.  393.    Dominique  hen.    (Photo- 
graph   from    owners,    Dr.   Skerritt 
and  Son,  Utica,  New  York) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       397 

European  races  to  which  it  properly  belonged,  the  Dominique 
had  not  the  rugged,  vigorous  constitution  of  the  Asiatics  and 
of  the  American  types  developed  by  fusion  of  European  and 
Asiatic  races. 

Earliest  American  general-purpose  types.  If  there  were  no 
other  evidence  of  the  presence  of  Asiatic  fowls  in  America  long 
before  the  dates  given  for  their  introduction,  the  existence  of  at 
least  two  well-defined  varieties  formed  by  combination  of  Asiatic 
stock  with  native  stock  of  European  origin  should  establish  the 
fact.  The  Jersey  Blue  and  the  Bucks  County  Fowl,  both  of  this 
type,  had  a  more  than  local  reputation  and  were  somewhat  widely 
distributed  before  the  sensational  exploitation  of  the  Asiatic  type. 
It  is  possible,  too,  that  the  Rhode  Island  Red  type  existed  at  that 
time,  though  the  breed  was  scarcely  heard  of,  outside  of  the  locality 
in  which  it  originated,  until  nearly  half  a  century  later. 

Jersey  Blues  are  said  to  have  been  made  by  crossing  Black 
Spanish  with  Malays  or  Shanghais.  They  were  of  medium  size, 
with  single  combs,  red  ear  lobes,  and  the  plumage  coloration  of 
the  Andalusian.  After  the  name  became  known,  it  was  customary 
all  over  the  country  to  call  any  blue  fowl  a  Jersey  Blue,  and  the 
name  was  often  given  to  mongrels  from  chance  matings  of  black 
and  white  fowls. 

Bucks  County  Fowls  were  developed  in  Bucks  County,  Pennsyl- 
vania, by  crossing  Asiatic  and  native  stocks.  In  everything  but 
color  they  were  of  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  type.  The  color 
was  buff, —  usually  a  dingy  buff, —  with  some  black  in  the  hackle, 
wings,  and  tail,  and  often  in  other  parts  of  the  plumage.  Why 
this  variety,  widely  known  by  name  and  as  meritorious  as  the 
Plymouth  Rock,  failed  to  attract  more  attention  is  one  of  the 
puzzles  of  the  history  of  varieties  of  poultry.  Considerable  flocks 
of  them  could  be  found  in  places  in  the  eastern  states  until  after 
the  Buff  Plymouth  Rock  became  well  established.  In  the  making 
of  that  variety  they  were  probably  used  much  more  extensively  than 
has  been  admitted.  Certainly  they  offered  the  best  foundation 
stock,  having  the  Plymouth  Rock  type  and  a  color  so  closely  ap- 
proaching buff  that  they  frequently  produced  specimens  of  better 
color  than  many  of  the  early  winners  among  Buff  Rocks.  There 
are  probably  some  stocks  of  Bucks  County  Fowls  still  to  be  found, 


398  POULTRY  CULTURE 

but  many  of  the  stocks  long  kept  pure  have  been  converted  into 
Buff  Plymouth  Rocks. 

Transient  forms  of  this  type  were  produced  in  great  abundance 
and  in  all  colors.  Among  them  the  type  that  first  bore  the  name 
"Plymouth  Rock,"  made  from  a  mixture  of  Asiatic  and  Dorking 
blood,  seems  to  have  been  for  a  short  period  sufficiently  popular 
to  be  remembered  and  to  make  its  reputation  something  of  an 
asset  to  the  promoters  of  the  modern  Plymouth  Rock.  This  early 
Plymouth  Rock  had  the  principal  general-purpose-class  character- 
istics, but  the  color  pattern  seems  to  have  been  indeterminate, —  a 
black-red  type  with  no  fixed  pattern  in  the  female.  Many  of  the 
birds  had  five  toes,  and  the  legs  were  of  various  colors.  Consider- 
ing the  popular  attitude  toward  types  of  fowls,  the  almost  universal 
practice  of  crossing  (among  all  poultry  keepers  except  the  few  breed- 
ing for  definite  superficial  features),  and  the  numbers  of  breeders 
who  were  seeking  to  make  a  type  of  general-purpose  fowl  that 
would  meet  the  general  demand,  it  is  highly  probable  that  speci- 
mens closely  approximating  or  presenting  the  principal  characteris- 
tics of  every  one  of  our  modern  varieties  of  this  type  were  produced 
again  and  again,  and  for  the  most  part  mingled  with  the  general 
stock  and  passed  without  notice.  A  few  were  developed  by  the 
breeders  who  claimed  to  have  discovered  them.  Occasionally  one 
of  these  attained  some  reputation,  and  perhaps  figured  in  the 
development  of  a  permanent  variety. 

Origin  of  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock.  About  1864  or  1865  (the 
date  is  uncertain)  Joseph  Spalding,  of  Putnam,  Connnecticut,  at  the 
instance  of  John  Giles,  of  Woodstock  in  the  same  state,  mated  a 
hawk-colored  cock  with  some  Black  Cochin  (then  sometimes  called 
Java)  hens.  The  cross  produced  cockerels  mostly  like  the  sire. 
The  pullets  were  mostly  black  or  nearly  black,  but  a  few  were 
marked  like  the  males.  Reverend  D.  A.  Upham,  of  Wilson ville, 
Connecticut,  saw  the  birds  and  with  some  difficulty  persuaded  Spald- 
ing to  sell  him  the  best-marked  and  cleanest-legged  cockerel  and  the 
two  best  pullets.  From  this  trio  and  its  progeny  Mr.  Upham  bred 
for  several  years.  While  Spalding  and  Upham  were  working  with 
this  stock,  and  before  it  was  introduced  to  the  public,  a  Mr.  Drake, 
of  Stoughton,  Massachusetts,  had  produced  birds  of  the  same  general 
type  and  color  by  mating  hawk-colored  females  with  Asiatic  males, 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS       399 

either  Light  Brahma  or  White  Cochin.  Both  varieties  may  have 
been  used,  but  the  Drake  stock  showed  pronounced  traces  of 
Brahma  rather  than  of  Cochin  blood. 

In  March,  1869,  Upham  exhibited  his  birds  as  Barred  Plymouth 
Rocks,  at  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  where  they  made  a  sensation 
and  entered  on  a  career  of  popularity  so  far-reaching  that  within 
twenty  years  it  was  estimated  that  they  outnumbered  all  other  pure- 
bred varieties  of  fowls  in  the  United  States.  Their  popularity  had 
brought  out  other  varieties  of  the  type  and  greatly  stimulated  inter- 
est in  them  here,  while  in  England  the  type,  though  of  a  color  of 
skin  and  legs  not  favored  there,  was  rapidly  displacing  the  Euro- 
pean races,  until  an  English  style  of  the  same  type  was  produced 
in  the  Orpington. 

Early  strains  of  Barred  Plymouth  Rock.  The  instant  popu- 
larity of  the  Plymouth  Rock l  created  a  demand  for  them  far  be- 
yond what  could  be  supplied  from  the  Spalding,  Upham,  and  Drake 
stocks.  Those  who  were  so  fortunate  as  to  secure  stock  from  these 
earliest  originators  had,  if  they  used  it  to  advantage,  several  years 
the  start  of  others.  Many  who  could  not  get  this  stock  made  crosses 
to  produce  the  type.  Though  the  facts  in  such  cases  would  probably 
not  be  recorded,  no  one  who  knows  the  ways  of  poultry  breeding 
can  doubt  that  there  were  throughout  the  country  many  birds  of 
this  type  (in  the  rough),  and  that  hundreds  of  breeders  began  to 
mate  such  specimens  as  they  had  or  could  procure,  using  blood 
from  the  more  advanced  lines  of  breeding  when  it  could  be  ob- 
tained. The  best  of  the  early  strains  were  the  Upham,  Drake, 
Gilman,  and  Essex, — the  latter  being  an  improved  Upham  strain, 
developed  first  in  Essex  County,  Massachusetts,  by  Mark  Pitman, 
and  later  by  H.  B.  May  at  Natick,  Massachusetts.  This  stock,  though 
the  best  of  the  early  Plymouth  Rocks,  lacked  much  of  meeting  the 
ideals  of  fanciers.  The  stock  as  it  came  into  May's  possession 
seemed  to  lack  stamina.  He  tried  a  Light  Brahma  cross  on  some 
of  it,  with  unsatisfactory  results.  Then  he  chanced  on  a  cock  de- 
scribed as  a  grade  Game,  which  he  thought  promised  to  give  the 
desired  results.  This  bird  (a  black-red  in  color)  had  yellow  legs 
and  a  very  full  breast.  The  cross  proved  most  satisfactory.  In 

1  Until  the  white  variety  appeared,  the  term  "  barred  "  was  not  used.  The  breed 
was  simply  the  "  Plymouth  Rock." 


400 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  394.   Dominique  cock.   (Photograph  from 
owner,  A.  Q.  Carter,  Freeport,  Maine) 


three  years  the  undesirable 
features  that  it  brought 
had  been  bred  out,  and  in 
the  May  stock  of  the  orig- 
inal Essex  strain  had  ap- 
peared the  modern  Barred 
Plymouth  Rock.  It  was  in 
his  work  with  this  stock 
that  May  devised  the 
double  system  of  mating 
necessary  to  produce  birds 
that  match  in  the  show  pen. 
The  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock.  As  bred  for  exhibi- 
tion the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  owes  most  of  its  merit 
to  the  May-Essex  strain. 

The  blood  has  been  so  widely  distributed  and  so  effectively  used 
that,  whatever  the  founda- 
tion,- practically  all  Barred 
Rock  stock  of  first-rate  qual- 
ity presents  the  character 
first  successfully  developed 
in  it.  Individual  taste  in 
poultry  breeders,  and  indi- 
vidual qualities  in  the  birds 
they  use,  tend  to  slight  vari- 
ations in  stocks,  but  pro- 
nounced strain  differences 
have  quite  disappeared.  In 
color  there  has  been  con- 
stant improvement.  The 
ideal,  from  the  time  when 
Upham  first  saw  the  cross- 
bred Spalding  chickens,  was 
a  bluish-gray  bird  barred 

evenly      all       Over    —  both      FlG-395-    Barred  Plymouth  Rock  cock.   (Pho- 
1  tograph  from  United  States  Department  of 

sexes  of   the  same    shade  Agriculture) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      401 


FIG.  396.    Dominique  hen 

(Photograph  from  owner, 

A.  Q.  Carter) 


and  markings.    It  was  found  impossible  to  produce  this  with  regu- 
larity by  mating  males  and  females  of  the  desired  shade,  and  in 

consequence  the  double-mating  system 
has  been  used  to  give  this  result.  There 
are  really  two  subvarieties  of  the  Exhi- 
bition Barred  Plymouth  Rock,  usually  de- 
scribed as  the  male  line  and  the  female 
line  respectively. 

The  Exhibition  male  is  produced  by 
mating  Exhibition  males  to  females  of 
the  same  line  of  breeding,  these  being 
very  much  darker  and  less  distinctly  barred 
than  the  males. 

The  Exhibition  female  is  produced  by 
mating  Exhibition  females  to  males  of  the 
same  line  of  breeding,  these  being  much 
lighter  in  shade  and  usually  less  distinctly 
barred.  The  color  of  the  Barred  Plymouth 

Rock  is  most  difficult  to  describe.    It  varies  in  varying  lights,  and 

the  effect  depends  much  also  on 

the  width  and  regularity  of  the 

bars.    As  now  described  in  the 

American  Standard,  the  ground 

is    grayish-white,   the   dark  bars 

stopping  short  of  positive  black. 
White  Plymouth  Rocks.    The 

credit  of  introducing  the  White 

Plymouth  Rock  as   such  to  the 

public  is  generally  conceded  to 

O.  F.  Frost,  of  Monmouth,  Maine. 

The  Frost  stock,  considered  the 

best  of  the  early  strains,  is  said 

to  have  come,  about  1875-1876, 

as  sports  from  the  barred  variety. 

Such  sports  still  sometimes  come 

from   matings  of   Barred   Rocks 

and,  according  to  the  common  testimony  of  those  who  have  had 

and  who  have  bred  them,  almost  invariably  reproduce  only  white 


FIG.  397.  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  hen 
(Photograph  from  United  States  De- 
partment of  Agriculture) 


402 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


birds  when  mated  to- 
gether or  mated  with 
White  Plymouth  Rock 
stock.  With  sporting 
still  occurring,  it  is 
easy  to  accept  the 
statements  of  the  early 
breeders  of  Barred 
Rocks,  who  say  that 
white  sports  were  com- 
mon. From  the  use  of 
white  fowls  in  matings 
to  produce  Barred 
Plymouth  Rocks  it 
may  be  inferred  that 
white  specimens  were 
often  produced  in  con- 
siderable numbers  by 
direct  transmission  of 
color  and  by  reversion 
to  known  ancestors.  It  is  also  probable  that  many  white  fowls  of 
this  type  were  produced  from 
accidental  crosses.  It  is  further 
quite  well  established  that  some 
were  produced  with  design  to 
make  a  White  Plymouth  Rock  by 
breeders  who  preferred  that  color. 
Up  to  the  time  of  their  admission 
to  the  American  Standard,  white 
fowls  of  this  type  went  by  vari- 
ous names.  After  that  the  vari- 
ations in  type  were  harmonized 
and  strain  differences  gradually 
eliminated  as  in  the  barred  vari- 
ety. For  some  time  after  their 


FIG.  398-    White  Plymouth  Rock  cock,  owned  by 

Urban    Farms,   Pine    Ridge,    Buffalo,   New  York 

(Photograph  by  Schilling) 


introduction  the  White  Rocks 
were  usually  considered  less  vig- 
orous than  the  others,  but  if  that 


FIG.  399.    White  Plymouth  Rock  hen 

(Photograph  from  owner,  C.  E.  Hodg- 

kins,  Northampton,  Massachusetts) 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      403 


FIG.  400.     Buff    Plymouth    Rock    hen 

(Photograph  from  owner,  J.  A.  Ashline, 

Fitchburg,  Massachusetts) 


difference  ever  actually  existed, 
it  has  long  since  disappeared. 
The  color  needs  no  special 
description. 

Buff  Plymouth  Rocks.  As 
first  shown,  Buff  Plymouth 
Rocks  were  Rhode  Island 
Reds  of  light  shade  and  with 
single  combs,  selected  from 
farm  flocks  in  the  district 
where  the  Rhode  Island  Red 
had  become  the  common  fowl. 
This  was  in  1890,  when  Buff 
Leghorns  were  being  intro- 
duced to  Americans  and  the 
"craze"  for  buff  color  was 
beginning.  This  Rhode  Island 

Red  stock  was  the  foundation  for  some  of  the  early  strains  of 
Buff  Rocks,  but  seems  to  have  had  much  less  influence  on  the 
variety  as  a  whole 
than  the  crosses  of 
Asiatic  and  Mediter- 
ranean races  which 
were  made  to  produce 
it  directly.  The  Buff 
Cochin  with  White 
Plymouth  Rock  or 
Buff  Leghorn  gave  the 
best  results.  White 
Leghorn  and  Buff  Co- 
chin were  also  used. 
To  some  extent  the 
Bucks  County  Fowl 
and  the  single-combed 
specimens  of  the  Buff 
Wyandotte  entered  in- 
to the  making  of  the  FlG>  40I<  Buff  piymouth  Rock  cock.  (Photograph 
race.  Like  the  other  by  Graham) 


404 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


color  types  of  the  Plymouth  Rock,  it  was  a  type  of  frequent  occur- 
rence, and  as  soon  as  a  demand  for  it  arose,  the  work  of  fixing  the 
type  began.  With  the  materials  to  work  with,  this  process  was 
comparatively  short,  and  within  ten  years  of  its  first  public  appear- 
ance the  color  was  quite  as  good  as  in  Buff  Cochins. 

Partridge  Plymouth  Rocks,  and  the  two  following  varieties, 
may  be  regarded  as  originally  by-products  in  the  manufacture  of 

Wyandotte  varieties  of 
the  same  color.  In  most 
varieties  of  Wyandottes, 
and  particularly  in  the 
early  stages  of  develop- 
ment, single  combs  have 
occurred  frequently ;  and 
the  single-combed  Wy- 
andotte, though  perhaps 
not  of  ideal  shape,  is  to 
all  appearances  a  Plym- 
outh Rock  of  the  color 
that  it  carries.  The  col- 
oration of  the  Partridge 
Plymouth  Rock  is  of  the 
black-red  pattern,  exactly 
following  the  description 
FIG.  402.  Partridge  Plymouth  Rock  cockerel  of  the  Partridge  Cochin. 
(Photograph  from  owner,  S.  A.  Noftzger,  North  „  crocks  of  this  vari 

Manchester,  Indiana) 

ety  were  made,  at  least 
in  part,  from  Brown  Leghorn  and  Partridge  Cochin  crosses. 

Silver-Penciled  Plymouth  Rocks  came  from  the  same  sources 
as  the  WTyandotte  of  the  same  description.  The  coloration  is  of  the 
black-white  pattern,  following  the  Dark  Brahma  style  of  markings. 

Columbian  Plymouth  Rocks  present  the  Plymouth  Rock  charac- 
teristics with  the  Light  Brahma  coloration.  While  some  may  have 
been  derived  from  other  sources,  the  single-combed  specimens  of 
the  Columbian  Wyandotte  have  been  a  more  than  sufficient  source 
of  supply. 

Javas.  As  has  been  stated,  the  name  "Java"  was  sometimes 
given  to  the  Black  Cochin.  With  a  more  discriminating  use  of 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      405 


names  this  was  applied  to  large 
black  fowls  with  small  single 
combs  and  smooth  yellow  or 
yellowish  legs.  In  the  early 
history  of  the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  many  black  specimens 
were  produced.  These  seem 
to  have  been  the  chief  source 
of  supply,  though  doubtless 
other  black  fowls  were  used. 
The  Black  Java  was  the  prin- 
cipal variety  given  this  name, 
but  there  were  also  white  and 
mottled  (black-and-white)  birds 
of  this  type,  —  these  being 
colors  likely  to  occur  in  rever- 
sion and  (coming  from  the  Java 
stock)  to  be  considered  as  be- 
longing to  that  breed.  None 
of  the  varieties  of  the  Java  have  ever  been  popular.  As  varieties 
of  the  Plymouth  Rock  they  might  have  fared  better. 


FIG.  403.  Columbian  Plymouth  Rock 
cockerel.  (Photograph  from  owner, 
S.  C.  Allen,  Orchard  Park,  New  York) 


FIG.  404.    Columbian  Plymouth  Rock  pullets.    (Photograph  from  owner, 
S.  C.  Allen) 


406 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  405.    Silver-Laced  Wyandotte 

hen,    owned    by    J.  C.  Patterson, 

Monsey,  New  York.    (Photograph 

by  Schilling) 

"American  Sebright."    With 
statement  of    the    develop- 
ment of  the  breed  is  simpli- 
fied by  applying  the  present 
name  to  it  at  all  stages. 

The  Silver-Laced  Wyan- 
dotte. Accounts  of  the  ori- 
gin of  this  variety  are  very 
unsatisfactory ;  the  most  cir- 
cumstantial of  them  credits 
a  Mr.  Ray,  of  Hemlock 
Lake,  New  York,  with  pro- 
ducing, about  1868-1869, 
from  a  cross  of  Silver  Se- 
bright  Bantam  and  Yellow 
Chittagong(or  Buff  Cochin), 
fowls  which  he  called  Se- 
bright  Cochins,  which  be- 
came the  foundation  stock 
of  this  variety.  These  birds 


The  Wyandottes.  The  popu- 
larity of  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock 
led  to  a  search  for,  and  to  the  de- 
velopment of,  another  breed  even 
earlier  than  the  development  of 
the  white  variety  of  the  Plymouth 
Rock.  The  ideal  of  the  Barred 
Plymouth  Rock  was  definitely  fixed 
from  the  beginning  of  the  history 
of  the  breed.  Not  so,  apparently, 
was  the  ideal  of  the  first  of  the 
Wyandottes,  —  a  name  conferred 
on  them  in  1883,  when  they  were 
admitted  to  the  American  Stand- 
ard. Prior  to  that  time  fowls  of 
the  general-purpose  type  with  rose 
combs  went  by  a  number  of  names, 
the  most  familiar  of  which  was 
this  explanation  to  show  the  fact,  the 


FIG.  406.    Silver-Laced  Wyandotte  cock, 

owned  by  J.  C.  Patterson.    (Photograph 

by  Schilling) 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OE  EOWLS      407 


were  not  distinctly  laced  and 
showed  considerable  yellow. 
They  had  both  rose  and 
single  combs.  On  this  foun- 
dation were  used  crosses  of 
Silver-Spangled  Hamburg 
and  Dark  Brahma,  and  also 
a  black  fowl  known  as  a 
Breda,  of  supposed  Rus- 
sian origin.  This  does  not 
strike  the  student  of  races  of 
poultry  as  a  likely  account. 
While  it  is  not  impossible 
that  poor  lacing  from  a 
bantam  source  might  be 
intensified  by  adding  to  it 
spangling,  penciling,  and 
black,  it  is  improbable.  A 
more  credible  though  not 
well-attested  account  says 
that  a  general-purpose  type  of 
fowl,  with  the  laced  pattern  not 
regularly  developed,  ranging  in 


FIG.  407.    Golden-Laced  Wyandotte  cock 

(Photograph     from     owners,     Wood     and 

Freeman,  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts) 


FIG.  408.  Golden-Laced  Wyandotte 

hen.      (Photograph    from    owners, 

Wood  and  Freeman) 


FIG.  409.  Three-quarters  rear  view 

of  Golden- Laced  Wyandotte  cock 

in  Fig.  407 


408 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


shade  from  very  light  to  very  dark,  and  with  both  rose  and  single 
combs,  was  a  common  type  in  one  or  more  communities  in  the 
state  of  New  York,  and  furnished  the  material  from  which  the  Sil- 
ver Wyandotte  was  developed,  largely  by  selection.  This  version 
carries  more  probability  than  the  other,  even  though  it  offers  no 
explanation  of  the  origin  of  the  color  pattern  and  makes  no  attempt 
to  show  what  elements  composed  the  stock.  It  makes  the  Silver 

Wyandotte  one  of  the  numerous 
types  early  developed  in  efforts 
to  fix  a  general-purpose  type, 
making  some  progress  locally  on 
its  merits  and,  after  the  success 
of  the  Barred  Rock  had  stimu- 
lated breeders  to  new  efforts, 
taken  up  for  the  development  of 
the  ideal  of  which  it  was  then 
only  a  suggestion.  The  favorite 
type  of  the  early  Silver  Wyan- 
dottes  was  much  darker  than  that 
with  which  breeders  are  now 
familiar.  The  modern  exhibition 
birds  of  this  variety  have  the 
color  of  the  Silver  Polish,  but 
with  black  tails. 

The  Golden-Laced  Wyandotte 
was  produced  in  Wisconsin  by 
crossing  the  silver-laced  variety 

with  a  local  breed  known  as  the  Winnebago,  the  origin  of  which  is 
unknown.1  The  color  pattern  is  the  same  as  in  the  silver-laced 

1  In  "  Wyandottes :  Silver,  Golden,  Black,  and  White,"  by  Joseph  Wallace,  1891, 
Joseph  McKeen,  of  Omro,  Wisconsin,  is  quoted  as  denying  that  the  WTinnebagos 
had  been  bred  a  long  time  in  Wisconsin,  and  claiming  that  he  originated  them. 
McKeen  places  the  beginning  of  his  work  with  the  Winnebagos  "  a  few  years 
after  "  1872  or  1873,  ano^  indicates  that,  at  the  time  he  crossed  them  with  the  Silver- 
Laced  Wyandottes,  they  were  in  a  very  crude  condition.  At  about  the  time  when 
McKeen  said  that  he  was  beginning  to  make  the  Winnebagos,  the  author,  then  a 
boy  in  Galena,  Illinois,  bought,  in  the  market  of  that  town,  two  hens  called  Winne- 
bagos, of  a  redder  ground  color  than  the  early  Golden  Wyandottes,  and  as  well  laced 
as  the  average  Golden  Wyandotte  of  fifteen  to  twenty  years  later.  No  doubt 
McKeen  owed  much  more  to  such  Winnebagos  than  he  was  willing  to  admit. 


FIG.  410.    White  Wyandotte  cock, 

owned  by  J.  W.  Andrews,  Dighton, 

Massachusetts 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      409 


FIG.  411 .  White  Wyandotte  pullet, 
owned   by   A.  G.  Duston,    South 
Framingham,  Massachusetts.  (Pho- 
tograph by  Sewell) 


variety,  with  a  ground  of  golden  bay 
instead  of  white. 

White  Wyandottes  were  produced 
as  sports  from  the  lighter  specimens 
of  the  early  silver-laced  variety,  and 
also  (it  may  safely  be  presumed)  by 
every  cross  that  promised  a  rose- 
combed  white  fowl  of  this  general 
type.  In  fact,  for  a  long  time  after 
the  variety  was  introduced,  any  rose- 
combed  white  fowl  with  yellow  legs 
that  was  larger  than  an  ordinary  Leg- 
horn was  offered,  and  often  passed, 
as  a  White  Wyandotte.  The  stock, 
as  introduced  in  1885  by  Reverend 
B.  M.  Briggs,  then  of  Wyandale,  New 
York,  was  of  Silver- Laced  Wyandotte  origin.  The  very  heavy- 
bodied,  dark-egg  strains  of  some  years  later  bore  unmistakable 
traces  of  Light  Brahma  blood.  As  with  other  American  varieties 
time  and  wide  distribution  of 
the  best  stocks  has  gradually 
produced  great  uniformity  of 
type.  After  the  Barred  Plym- 
outh Rock,  the  White  Wyan- 
dotte became  the  most  popular 
variety  in  America ;  and  within 
ten  years  of  its  introduction  it 
was  regarded  as  a  dangerous 
rival  of  the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock.  Had  the  competition 
been  between  the  Barred  Plym- 
outh Rock  and  the  White  Wy- 
andotte alone,  the  latter  would 
have  led  in  the  end,  but  the 
White  Wyandotte  had  to  divide 
with  the  White  Plymouth  Rock 


the  favor  of  those  who  wanted 
a  white  fowl  of  its  class. 


FIG.  412.    White  Wyandotte  cockerel, 

owned    by  J.   W.   Andrews,    Dighton, 

Massachusetts 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  413.  Black  Wyandotte  cock.   (Pho- 
tograph   from    owner,     F.    S.   Chaffee, 
Rutland,  Vermont) 


The  Buff  Wyandotte.  The 
history  of  this  variety  closely 
parallels  that  of  the  Buff 
Plymouth  Rock.  It  was  first 
introduced  to  the  public  at 
the  same  time  and  place,  by 
the  same  men,  and  with  stock 
from  the  same  source,  — 
rose-combed  buff  birds  from 
the  farm  flocks  of  Rhode 
Island  Reds.  Elsewhere  Buff 


FIG.  415.     Buff   Wyandotte   cockerel 
(Photograph  by  E.  J.  Hall) 


FIG.  414.     Black  Wyandotte   hen 
owned  by   F.   S.  Chaffee.    (Photo- 
graph from  owner) 

Wyandottes  were  made  from 
a  variety  of  crosses,  one  of 
the  best  being  the  cross  of 
Golden  Wyandotte  and  Buff 
Cochin. 

Black  Wyandottes.  About 
the  time  that  white  specimens 
from  Silver- Laced  Wyandottes 
were  being  bred  together  to 
form  a  white  variety  of  the 
breed,  the  black  specimens, 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      411 

which  also  appeared  occasionally,  were  used  by  a  few  breeders  to 
make  a  black  variety.  Black  Wyandottes  have  never  become  pop- 
ular, but  a  few  fanciers  have  continued  to  breed  them,  and  the  stock 
of  this  variety  seen  in  exhibitions  is  usually  of  very  good  quality. 

Partridge  (or  Golden- Penciled]  Wyandottes  were  made  by 
crosses  of  Golden  Wyandotte  and  Partridge  Cochin,  with  the 
further  infusion,  in  one  of  the  principal  strains  (known  as  the 


FIG.  416.  Silver-Penciled  Wyandottes.  (Photograph  from  owner,  James  S.  Wason, 
Grand  Rapids,  Michigan) 

Brackenbury-Cornell,  or  Eastern,  strain),  of  Rose-Comb  Brown 
Leghorn  and  Golden-Penciled  Hamburg  blood,  and  in  the  other 
(known  as  the  Western  strain),  of  Cornish  Indian  Game  blood. 
These  strains  were  quite  distinct  until  after  the  admission  of  the 
variety  to  the  American  Standard  in  1 90 1 .  Since  then  they  have 
been  mingled,  and  the  modern  stock  of  this  variety  is  practically 
a  blend  of  these  two  lines.  The  coloration  in  the  Silver  Penciled 
Wyandotte  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  Partridge  Cochin. 


412 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  417.   Columbian  Wyandotte  cockerel 

U.  Lincoln  Orr,  Orr's  Mills,   New  York 

(Photograph  by  Sewell) 


The  Silver-Penciled  Wyan- 
dotte was  produced  almost 
simultaneously  with  the  Brack- 
enbury-  Cornell  strain  of  the 
foregoing  variety,  by  the  same 
breeders,  and  was  admitted  to 
the  Standard  only  a  year  later, 
in  1902.  This  variety  was 
made  by  mating  a  Dark 
Brahma  hen  to  a  Partridge 
Wyandotte  male,  and  Dark 
Brahma  and  Silver-Penciled 
Hamburg  females  to  a  Silver- 
Laced  Wyandotte  male,  and 
by  breeding  selected  speci- 
mens from  the  offspring  of 
these  matings.  The  coloration 
is  the  same  as  of  the  Dark 
Brahma. 
Columbian  Wyandottes  were  introduced  in  1893  by  B.  M. 

Briggs  (who  introduced  the  White  Wyandottes).    The  name  was 

given  in 'honor  of  the  Columbian  Exposition  in  progress  at  the 

time.     The    color   and    markings 

are    the    same    as    of   the    Light 

Brahma.    In  the  original  Briggs 

stock  the  color  was  produced  first 

from  a  chance  mating  of  a  White 

Wyandotte    cock    and    a    Barred 

Plymouth  Rock  hen.    The  variety, 

when    introduced,   attracted   little 

attention.    A  few  breeders  took  it 

up,  and  some  of  them,  not  satis- 
fied with    the  color   and    having 

little  confidence  in  getting  what 

they  desired  by  selection  from  the 

original   stock,   resorted  to   other 

crosses.     The  White   Wvandotte      FlG'  4l8'    Columbian  Wyandotte 

anrl  T  io4^  13     u  pullet,  D.  Lincoln  Orr.  (Photograph 

and  Light  Brahma  were  used,  and  by  Sewell} 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      413 


also  the  White  Wyandotte  and  Rose-Combed  Rhode  Island  Red. 

Both  of  these  crosses  gave  birds  of  stronger  color  than  the  origi- 
nal. The  variety  is  still 1  in  the 
formative  stage,  nearly  all  breeders 
still  either  crossing  or  working  out 
undesirable  features  introduced  by 
crossing.  Though  almost  unno- 
ticed for  about  ten  years  after  its 


FIG.  419.    Columbian  Wyandotte 

hen.     Sunny  Brook  Farm,  West 

Orange,  New  Jersey2 


FIG.  420.  Columbian  Wyandotte  cockerel 
Sunny  Brook  Farm2 


introduction  to  the  public,  when 
it  began  to  attract  attention  its 
popularity  increased  very  rapidly. 
It  is  now  generally  regarded  as 
likely  to  become  one  of  the  most 

FIG.  421.    Columbian  Wyandotte 

pullet,  Sunny  Brook  Farm2  popular  varieties  of  its  class. 

Rhode  Island  Reds.    About  the 

middle  of  the  last  century,  by  such  mixtures  of  native,  European, 
and  Asiatic  stock  as  were  then  being  made  all  over  the  eastern 


1911. 


2  Photograph  by  Graham. 


414 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


United  States,  the  Rhode  Island  Reds  were  developed  as  the 
common  fowls  of  the  poultry-farming  district  of  Rhode  Island. 
Since  that  time  they  have  developed  continuously  by  absorption 


FIG.   422.     Single-Combed    Rhode 
Island  Red  pullet1 


FIG.  423.    Single-Combed  Rhode 
Island  Red  hen 


of  the  blood  of  almost  all  races  that  have  attracted  notice,  the 
red  color  and  the  general-purpose  type  being  preserved  through 
it  all.  As  bred  on  these  farms 
little  attention  was  given,  as  a 
rule,  to  selection  for  a  partic- 
ular shade  or  for  uniformity  of 
color,  though  a  few  stocks  were 
selected  with  some  care  as  to 
such  points.  In  size  and  shape 
they  varied  much  more  than  is 
usual  when  any  form  of  selec- 
tion has  long  been  practiced. 
As  has  been  said,  the  first  Buff 
Plymouth  Rocks  and  Buff  Wy- 
andottes  shown  in  America  were 
light-colored  Rhode  Island  Reds. 
In  the  farm  stock  single,  rose,  ^ 

FIG.  424.    Rose-Combed  Rhode  Island 

and  pea  combs  were  found,  and  Red  cock 

1  Birds  in  Figs.  422-427  owned  by  Lester  Tompkins,  Concord,  Massachusetts. 
Photographs  by  Schilling. 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      415 


when  first  taken  up  by  fanciers, 
they  were  bred  as  three  vari- 
eties. Later  the  pea-combed 
variety  was  dropped.  It  is  said 
that  they  were  exhibited  as 
Rhode  Island  Reds  at  shows  in 
southern  Massachusetts  about 
1879-1880.  No  classes  were 
provided  for  them  at  shows  until 
about  twenty  years  later.  They 
were  not  shown  at  New  York 
and  Boston  until  about  1900. 
For  some  years  they  were  very 
uneven  in  color,  ranging  from 
buff  to  a  chocolate  brown,  with 
size  and  shape  quite  as  variable. 
Gradually  the  color  was  devel- 
oped as  a  rich,  brilliant  red  with 

black  in  the  tail  and  wings  and  a  little  black  ticking  in  the  hackle 
of  the  female ;  the  size  and  shape  also  were  made  more  uniform 
and  more  in  conformity  with  other  American  varieties  of  this  class. 
For  some  years  after  it  was  taken  up  by  fanciers,  interest  in  the 
Rhode  Island  Red  was  mostly  confined  to  southern  New  England. 


FIG.  425.   Single-Combed  Rhode  Island 
Red  cock 


FIG. 


426.     Rose-Combed    Rhode 
Island  Red  hen 


FIG.  427.  Rose-Combed  Rhode 
Island  Red  pullet 


416 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  428.    Buckeye  cockerel.    (Photo- 
graph  from   owner,   Eugene  Cowles, 
Shelbyville,  Kentucky) 


The  intensity  of  interest  there 
made  a  wide  impression  and  at 
present  it  is  well  distributed 
in  America.  . 

The  Buckeye  was  first  bred 
in  Ohio  as  a  red  pea-combed 
fowl  before  the  Rhode  Island 
Reds  were  known  there.  They 
differed  so  slightly  from  pea- 
combed  Rhode  Island  Reds 
that  when  the  originator  made 
the  acquaintance  of  the  Rhode 
Island  varieties,  the  name 
"  Buckeye "  was  discarded. 
After  the  Rhode  Island  Red 
fanciers  decided  not  to  con- 
tinue breeding  a  pea-combed 
variety,  the  name  "  Buckeye  " 
was  again  given  to  the  Ohio 
stock,  and  under  that  name  it 

was  admitted  to  the  American  Standard,  with  some  changes  in 

description  of  color  and  form  to  give  a  different  breed  character. 
The  Orpingtons.     This   breed 

takes  its  name  from  the  town  of 

Orpington,  Kent,  England,  where 

it  was  developed  by  Mr.  William 

Cook,  the  avowed  object  being  to 

produce  a  breed  of  the  general- 
purpose  type   better   adapted  to 

English    requirements    than    the 

Barred  Plymouth  Rock  and  the 

Silver--Laced  Wyandotte,  both  of 

which   were   rapidly   growing   in 

popularity  in  that  country.    The 

characteristic  difference  between 

Orpingtons    and    the    American 

general-purpose   varieties    is    the 

color  of  the  skin  (gray  or  white) 


FIG.  429.    Buckeye  pullet    (Photo- 
graph from  owner,  Eugene  Cowles) 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      417 


FIG.  430.    Single-Combed   Black 

Orpington  cockerel.  (Photograph 

from    owner,    W.    E.    Matthews, 

New  London,  Connecticut) 


and  legs  (black  or  flesh  color). 
The  typical  Orpington  is  also  a 
heavier-bodied  bird,  comparing 
with  American  birds  of  the  type 
as  do  the  English  Minorcas  and 
Leghorns  with  American  types  of 
those  breeds.  The  color  varieties 
are  black,  buff,  white,  variegated 
(the  "  Diamond  Jubilee  "),  and 
spangled.  In  some  varieties  there 
are  both  rose-  and  single-combed 
subvarieties,  as  indicated  in  the 
following  descriptions.  Thus  in 
the  Orpington  are  combined  the 
general  form  and  both  styles  of 
comb  found  in  fowls  of  the  Amer- 
ican general-purpose  type. 

Black   Orpingtons   (single-   and 
rose-comb).    This,  the  first  variety 

of  the  Orpington,  was  said  by  the  originator  to  have  been  produced 

by  a  series  of  crosses  in  which 

Black    Plymouth    Rocks,     Black 

Minorcas,  and  clean-legged  Black 

Langshans  were  used.     English 

writers  familiar  with  the  variety 

in  England  assert  that  it  shows 

Black    Cochin   blood  more  con- 
spicuously than  anything  else,  and 

the  appearance  of  many  of  the 

specimens  shown  in  America  sup- 
ports this  view.  The  Cochin  type, 

however,    is    not    the    exclusive 

type    in    the    Black    Orpington. 

Both  the  Langshan  type  and  the 

long-bodied  Plymouth  Rock  type 

are  found.    Consideration  of  such 

facts  indicates  that,  whatever  may  have  been  true  of  the  stock  of 

the  originator,  the  single-comb  Black  Orpington  is  at  present  a 


FIG.    431.     Single-Combed    Black 

Orpington  hen.    (Photograph  from 

owner,  W.  E.  Matthews) 


418 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  432.  Rose-Combed  Black  Orpington 
cockerel,  an  immature  bird  * 


composite  of  nearly  all  the 
earlier  varieties  of  black  fowls 
with  single  combs.  The  Rose- 
Comb  Black  Orpington  is  said 
to  have  been  produced  by  mat- 
ing Rose-Comb  Black  Lang- 
shan  males  with  pullets  from 
the  Minorca-Black  Plymouth 
Rock  cross  used  for  the  single- 
combed  subvariety.  The  black 
variety  was  presented  to  the 
public  in  1886. 

Buff  Orpingtons  (single-  and 
rose-comb).  The  originator's 
account  of  the  making  of  this 
variety  gives  the  Buff  Cochin 
as  the  foundation  stock,  with 
the  Golden-Spangled  Hamburg 
and  Dark  Dorking  as  the  other 

components.    The  prevailing  opinion  among  disinterested  English 

authorities  is  that  the  Buff  Orping- 
ton is,  as  one  writer  puts  it,  "a 

refined  Lincolnshire  Buff."    The 

Lincolnshire  Buff  is  a  breed  devel- 
oped locally,  like  the  Bucks  County 

Fowl  and  the  Rhode  Island  Red 

in  America.    The  Buff  Orpington, 

accordingly,  would  bear  the  same 

relation  to  it  as  a  Buff  Plymouth 

Rock  to  a  Bucks  County  Fowl,  or 

an  improved   Rhode  Island  Red 

to  the  ordinary  red  fowl  of  .the 

Little  Compton  farms.    Whatever 

the  facts  as  to  the  original  stock, 

here  again  there  is  no  doubt  that 

when  the  variety  became  popular,  any  buff  fowl  approximating  the 

type  might  be  passed  for  a  Buff  Orpington,  and  the  variety  to-day 

1  Photographs  from  owner,  II.  C.  Faulkner,  Marshall,  Michigan. 


FIG.  433.   Rose-Combed  Black 
Orpington  pullet1 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      419 


FIG.  434.    Single-Combed  Buff 
Orpington  pullet l 


is  the  result  of  the  blending  of  all 
these  stocks.  This  variety  was  intro- 
duced to  the  public  in  1894.  To-day 
it  is  rated  the  most  popular  of  English 

H^HM^^^I  varieties  in  the  colonies,  as  well  as  in 

the  mother  country. 

White  Orpingtons  (single-  and  rose- 
comb).  This  variety  was  said  by  the 
originator  to  have  resulted  from  crosses 
of  White  Leghorn,  Black  Hamburg, 
Single-Comb  White  Dorking,  and 
Cuckoo  Dorking.  It  was  brought  out 
in  1 889.  The  appearance  of  the  White 
Orpington  indicates  White  Cochin 
blood  as  one  of  its  important  factors. 
With  the  White  Dorking  this  would 

produce  the  type  more  directly  and  more  uniformly  than  the  more 

complex  crosses.     As   the 

variety  was  made  just  after 

the  White  Wyandotte  and 

White  Plymouth   Rock  in 

this    country,   these    might 

easily  have  been  used  in  the 

making  of  it.    Indeed,  with 

the  two  styles- of  comb  the 

White  Orpington,  like  the 

white  varieties  of  the  class 

in  this  country,  made  a  place 

for  any  smooth-legged  fowl, 

of  the    color    desired,    not 

readily  referred  to  a  previ- 
ously existing  breed. 

Diamond  Jubilee  Orping- 
tons (single-  and  rose-comb) 


were  brought  out  in  1897, 
the   year   of  the  Diamond 


FIG.  435.    Single-Combed  Buff  Orpington 
cock,  a  rugged  type  2 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  Miss  H.  E.  Hooker,  South  Hadley,  Massachusetts. 

2  Photograph  from  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 


420 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Jubilee  of  Queen  Victoria,  — 
hence  the  name.  The  variety 
is  said  to  have  been  produced 
in  the  same  way  as  the  Buff 
Orpington  stock  of  the  orig- 
inator, but  with  speckled  in- 
stead of  Dark  Dorkings.  The 
color  is  a  mixture  of  black, 
brown,  and  white  (such  as  has 
always  occurred  occasionally  in 
flocks  of  mixed  colors)  ;  this 
variety  was  bred  with  the  pur- 
pose of  securing  uniform  dis- 
tribution of  the  several  colors, 
and  a  more  pleasing  effect 
than  a  nondescript  pattern. 

Spangled  Orpingtons  (single- 
and  rose-comb)  are  black-and- 
white  mottled  fowls  said  by 

the  originator  to  have  been  produced  by  a  mingling  of  Dark  Dork- 
ing, Barred  Plymouth  Rock,  and  Silver 
Spangled  Hamburg;  they  are  declared 
by  other  English  authorities  to  be  identi- 
cal with  the  Speckled  Sussex.  Spangled 
Orpingtons  were  introduced  to  the  pub- 
lic in  1899. 


FIG.  436.  Single-Combed  Buff  Orpington 
cock,  a  very  meaty  specimen x 


NOTE.  These  six  breeds  (the  Plymouth  Rock, 
Java,  Wyandotte,  Rhode  Island  Red,  Buckeye, 
and  Orpington),  with  some  thirty  varieties  and 
subvarieties,  furnish,  in  the  standard  size,  weight, 
and  shape  of  body  of  each,  all  gradations  be- 
tween the  Leghorn  laying  type  and  the  Asiatic 
meat  type ;  in  combs,  all  the  principal  styles ;  in 
colors  and  color  patterns,  almost  all  the  distinct 
types  found  in  other  classes  of  fowls.  Taking 
any  one  of  these  varieties,  as  the  different  stocks 
and  as  the  birds  in  the  flocks  run,  we  find  in  it  specimens  of  most  (sometimes 
all)  of  the  other  types,  and  all  the  intermediate  sizes  and  forms.  Not  only  so, 

1  Photographs,  Figs.  436-439  from  owner,  J.  W.  Clark,  Cainsville,  Ontario. 


FIG.  437.     Single-Combed 
Buff  Orpington  hen 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      421 

but  in  the  larger  races  are  often  found  specimens  and  strains  with  the 
Asiatic  body  type,  and  in  the  smaller  races  specimens  and  strains  with  the 
body  type  of  the  small  European  races.  The  standard  type  in  any  case  is 
simply  the  pattern  or  model  selected  for  the  breed.  The  proportion  of  any 
flock  approaching  it  depends  on  the  selection  of  the  breeding  stock  and  the  de- 
velopment of  the  young  stock.  The  ideal  shape  is  preserved  only  in  flocks 
carefully  selected  for  that  character,  and  so  reared  that  full  development  is  se- 
cured. In  what  are  called  the  practical  qualities,  — egg  production  and  meat  prop- 
erties, —  and  in  their  adaptation  to  climatic  and  soil  conditions  and  environment, 
they  are  substantially  the  same.  The  differences  constantly  observed  between 
flocks  of  different  breeds,  varieties,  and  subvarieties  are  no  greater  than  those 
constantly  observed  between  stocks,  flocks,  and  individuals  of  the  same  variety. 
Special  excellence  in  any  character  or  combination  of  characters,  secured 
and  made  characteristic  of  a  stock  or  strain  by  a  breeder,  may  be  in  a  measure 
transmitted  to  other  stocks,  and  may  persist  for  a  while  in  his  stock  under  un- 
favorable conditions,  and  even  reappear  in  individuals  after  having  been  lost 
for  some  generations.  Certain  desirable  characters  or  traits  may  be  very  persist- 
ent in  some  lines  of  blood  in  any  variety ;  undesirable  features  may  be  as  per- 
sistent in  other  lines  in  the  same  variety.  These  observations  apply  to  all  races 
of  poultry,  but  apply  with  particular  force  in  consideration  of  this  class  because 
of  the  comparatively  narrow  range  of  standard  weights  and  shapes.  Descrip- 
tions of  these,  omitted  from  the  separate  descriptions  of  breeds  and  varieties, 
are  here  given,  and  with  the  weights  for  this  class,  weights  of  varieties  of  like 
weights  in  lighter  and  heavier  classes. 


TABLE  XXL    AMERICAN  STANDARD  WEIGHTS  OF  MEDIUM  BREEDS 


Type 

Breed 

Cock 

Cockerel 

Hen 

Pullet 

Eg;  gf 

Andalusian 

Pounds 

6 

Pounds 

c 

Pounds 

5' 

Pounds 

<L> 

c« 

O 

cx 

Rhode  Island  Red     .     .    . 
Wyandotte     

8i 

8J 

7i 

7l 

61 

61 

5 
?4 

3 

Buckeye 

Q 

8 

6 

r 

jeneral-] 

Plymouth  Rock  
Java    
Orpington  

9i 
9i 

JO 

8 
8 
81 

7i 

7-1 
8 

6| 
61 

7 

Meat 

Lan°~shan  . 

IO 

8 

7 

6 

A  glance  at  this  table  shows  plainly  the  difficulty  of  making  sharp  distinctions 
of  shape  in  these  breeds.  The  so-called  breed  types  may  be  differentiated  in 
verbal  and  pictorial  descriptions,  and  in  occasional  specimens,  but  that  in  or- 
dinary breeding  operations  they  should  be  somewhat  confused  is  inevitable. 
The  methods  of  judging  exhibition  poultry  and  the  necessities  of  color  breeding 
tend  also  to  confusion  of  body  types. 


422 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  438.    Single-Combed  Buff 
Orpington  pullet 


Typically  the  differences  in  shape  of 
body  between  these  breeds  are  as  fol- 
lows: The  Rhode  Island  Red,  compared 
with  the  Wyandotte  (which  has  the 
same  weights,  except  for  the  pullet), 
has  a  long  body,  described  as  "  oblong  "  ; 
the  Wyandotte,  a  chunky,  "  blocky " 
body.  The  Buckeye  tends  toward  the 
Indian  Game  rather  than  the  oblong 
Rhode  Island  Red  shape.  Compared 
with  the  Wyandotte  and  Rhode  Island 
Red,  the  Plymouth  Rock  is  longer-bodied 
than  the  Wyandotte  and  heavier  than 
the  Rhode  Island  Red,  with  more  weight 
in  the  rear.  The  Java  is  longer  and 
narrower  than  the  Plymouth  Rock,  the 
Orpington  broader  and  deeper.  To 
some  extent  these  differences  depend 
upon  length  of  plumage  and  carriage  of 

the  body.    As  between  any  breed  and  one  immediately  above  or  below  it  in 

the  scale  of  size  and  weight,  little  difference  in  tendencies  and  adaptations  is 

found.  Between  breeds  at  the  ex- 
tremes, considerable  differences  may 

be  noted.  The  lighter  breeds  are  usu- 
ally more  active  and  mature  earlier, 

are  less  prone  to  put  on  fat,  and  have 

a  longer   productive  life  than   the 

heavier,  though  the  latter,  while  in 

suitable  condition,  are  equally  good 

layers.     For  table  use  the   Rhode 

Island    Reds   are  commonly  rated 

rather  inferior  to  Plymouth  Rocks 

and  Wyandottes,  but  this  is  wholly 

a  matter  of  selection  for  meat  qual- 
ity. Some  stocks  of  Reds  are  as 

good  table  poultry  as  any  of  the 

other  breeds  of  the  class.    As  first 

introduced    the    Orpingtons    were 

probably  of   higher   average  table 

quality  than   the  American  breeds 

because  of  more  careful   selection 

along   that   line    in    England ;    as 

found  now  they  average  with  the 

others.    Choice  among  these  varieties  is  largely  a  matter  of  personal  preference 

for  a  particular  color,  or  for  a  color  adapted  to  some  feature  of  the  location. 


FIG.  439.  Single-Combed  Buff  Orpington 
cockerel 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      423 


Continental  European  general-purpose  types.  The  introduction 
of  the  heavy  Asiatic  type  had  less  effect  on  the  poultry  of  conti: 
nental  Europe  than  on  that  of  America  and  England.  A  few  races 
were  locally  developed  from  mixtures  of  Asiatic  with  native  stocks 
in  the  period  following  the  excitement  over  the  Asiatic  type,  but 
seem  not  to  have  attracted  attention  of  poultry  keepers  as  did  the 
American  and  English  varieties  of  this  class  when  introduced 
later.  The  principal  races  made  on  general-purpose  lines  on  the 
continent  are  as  follows  : 

The  Faverolles  were  developed  in  the  vicinity  of  the  town  of 
that  name  in  France,  from  a  variety  of  crosses  on  the  common 
fowls  of  the  district,  which 
were  largely  of  the  ordinary 
Houdan  type.  Brahma  and 
Cochin  males  were  largely  used, 
and  also  Dorkings.  Apparently 
any  large  male  was  considered 
desirable.  Faverolles  differ 
from  the  American  general- 
purpose  type  in  the  color  of 
the  skin  and  in  retaining  va- 
rious superfluous  features,  - 
the  beard,  the  feathers  on  the 
legs,  and  the  fifth  toe.  In 
their  native  district  all  colors 
are  found.  As  bred  by  Eng- 
lish and  American  fanciers  three  varieties  are  designated  :  salmon, 
light,  and  black.  The  Salmon  Faverolles  are  really  an  indeter- 
minate mixture  of  the  black-  or  brown-red  and  black-white  color 
patterns.  The  Light  or  Ermine  Faverolles  have  the  color  pattern 
of  the  Light  Brahma.  The  weight  of  males  is  from  6J-  to  8^ 
pounds,  of  females,  from  5  to  7  pounds.  They  are  reported  hardy, 
very  rapid  growers,  and  good  layers. 

The  Bourbourg,  produced  by  crossing  Brahmas  on  common 
fowls  of  the  laying  type  in  northern  France,  has  the  color  of  the 
Light  Brahma,  the  size  of  the  Wyandotte. 

The  Estaires,  produced  by  Game  and  Langshan  crosses  on 
common  fowls  of  the  laying  type  in  northern  France,  are  black 


FIG.  440.    Salmon  Faverolles  hen.    (Pho- 
tograph from  E.  T.  Brown) 


424 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  441.  Red  Pile  Game 
Bantam  cock2 


in  color,  with  a  rather  large  single  comb.  They  are  about  the  size 
of  the  Wyandotte. 

The  Prat  is  a  variety  produced  in  Spain  by  crossing  Asiatic  on 
native  Spanish  races.  In  size  it  compares  with  Wyandottes  and 
Plymouth  Rocks.  The  colors  are  various, 
brownish  and  yellowish  tints  predominating. 
It  is  a  type  similar  to  the  Rhode  Island  Red, 
but  with  comb  and  tail  more  resembling  the 
Mediterranean  races. 

The  M alines  is  a  Belgian  breed  produced 
by  crossing  the  Antwerp  Brahma1  and  fowls 
of  the  Campine  or  Flemish  Cuckoo  stock. 
The  colors  are  .cuckoo  and  white,  the  shape 
and  general  appearance  much  like  the  early 
type  of  Cochin  and 
Brahma  or  like  the 

Langshan.     Weights  :    males,    9    to    1 1  \ 
pounds ;  females,  8  to  10  pounds. 

The  Huttegem  is  a  mixture  of.  old  Bel- 
gian with  Asiatic  races.  The  colors  are 
various  ;  combs  both  single  and  rose  ;  legs 
feathered ;  weights :  males,  9  to  1 1  pounds  ; 

. ,     females,  7  to  9  pounds. 

The  Breda  was  pro- 
duced by  crossing  Asiatic  on  native  Dutch  stock. 
It  is  supposed  that  the  breed  may  have  originated 
from  ancient  importations  of  Asiatics,  but  recent 
crosses  have  given  it  much  of  its  present  char- 
acter. The  prevalent  colors  are  cuckoo,  black, 
white,  and  blue.  The  comb  is  rudimentary ;  feet 
slightly  feathered ;  weights :  males,  61  to  9  pounds ; 
females,  5  to  J\  pounds. 

Deformed  types.     Under   this  head  may  be 
described  a  few  irregular  forms. 


FIG.  442.    Golden  Duck- 
wing  Game  Bantam  hen2 


FIG.  443.    Birchen 
Game  Bantam  cock3 


1  The  Antwerp  Brahma  is  a  race  of  Light  Brahmas  imported  direct  from  China 
to  the  Antwerp  Zoological  Gardens,  and  there  bred  pure. 

2  Photograph  from  A.  E.  Blunck. 

8  Photograph  from  Hermitage  Bantam  Yards,  Nashua,  New  Hampshire. 


TYPES,   BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      425 


FIG.  444.  Rose-Comb 
Black  Bantam  hen J 


FIG.  445.    Rose-Comb  Black 

Bantam    cock.      (Photograph 

by  Graham) 


Rumple  'ss,  or  tailless  fowls.    In  the  true  rumpless  the  spine  lacks 
the  normal  number  of  vertebrae,  the  terminal  vertebra  is  deformed, 
and  the  fleshy  formation  from  which 
the     tail     feathers 
grow    is    wanting. 
The  feathers  of  the 
saddle   hang  down 
at  the  rear  as  at  the 
sides.     The   colors 
are  various.  The  de- 
formity is  not  reg- 
ularly    reproduced, 
but  occurs  in  some 
progeny.     Many  of 
the  rumpless  fowls   shown  in  exhibitions  are  said  to  be  manu- 
factured, the  part  on  which  the  tail   feathers  are  grown  being 
removed  when  the  bird  is  very  small. 

Frizzles  have  feathers  curved  outward 
at  the  ends.  This  freak  feature  may  be 
established  if  desired,  but  few  poultrymen 
are  interested  in  it.  The  birds  are  only 
used  as  novelties 
in  exhibitions. 

Silkies.    In  the 
Silky    fowls    the 

web  of  the  feather  is  hairlike.  The  plum- 
age is  generally  white.  The  skin  is  "  black." 
They  are  believed  to 
have  originated  in 
China  or  Japan,  where 
they  are  said  to  be 
abundant. 

Bantams.    Dwarfs  come  occasionally  in  all 
kinds  of  poultry,  and  there  are  references  in 


FIG.  446.    Silver  Sebright 
Bantam  hen2 


FIG.  447.    Silver  Sebright 
Bantam  cock2 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards, 
Waltham,  Massachusetts. 

2  Photograph  from  A.  E.  Blunck. 

8  Photograph  from  owner,  Brook  View  Farm,  New- 
bury,  Massachusetts. 


FIG.  448.     Silver 

Sebright    Bantam 

cockerel3 


426 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  449.    White  Polish 
Bantam  cock  2 


literature  to  dwarf  races  of  fowls  in  Europe  centuries  ago.  The 
name  has  been  supposed  to  come  from  the  province  of  Bantam, 
in  Java,  whence,  it  is  said,  were  imported 
the  first  bantams  to  attract  attention  in  Eng- 
land. Neither  record  nor  reliable  tradition 
gives  any  account  of  such  importation.  It 
was  apparently  assumed  in  order  to  connect 
dwarf  fowls  as  a  class  with  some  place  in 
Asia,  at  the  time  when  it  was  fashionable  to 
give  Asiatic  names  to  races  of  fowls.  The 
popular  name  for  a  dwarf  fowl  is  (and  un- 
doubtedly was  long  before  Asiatic  fowls 
came  to  Europe)  "  banty,"  which  probably 
comes  from  the  Gaelic 
banna:,  a  jot,  the  small- 
est portion  of  anything,  and  from  which  were 
derived  the  Gaelic  bean,  bian,  little,  small.1 

Economically  bantams  are  of  little  impor- 
tance. As  layers  they  are,  as  a  rule,  much 
inferior  to  large  fowls.  Only  the  largest  spec- 
imens of  the  largest  varieties  are  desirable  for 
poultry.  Most  varieties  are  rather  delicate, 
especially  when  young. 
Common  bantams  - 
that,  is,  those  of  no  par- 
ticular breeding  —  are  kept  mostly  as  chil- 
dren's pets.  Standard-bred  bantams  are  kept 
by  fanciers  to  whom  the  type  appeals  and 
who  take  pleasure  in  working  out  the  breed- 
ing problems  that  it  presents.  Dwarf  types 
of  nearly  all  races  of  fowls  have  been  pro- 
duced, and  there  are  a  few  quite  unlike  the 
large  types.  Singularly,  types  unpopular  in 
large  fowls  are  very  likely  to  be  popular  in 
bantams,  while  the  dwarf  types  of  popular 
fowls  attract  comparatively  little  notice.  The 

1  See  Williams's  Lexicon  Cornu-Brittanicum,  a  Dictionary  of  the  Gaelic  Lan- 
guage of  Ancient  Cornwall.  2  Photograph  by  Graham. 


FIG.  450.  White  Polish 
Bantam  hen2 


FIG.  451.  White  Japan- 
ese Bantam  cock2 


TYPES,  BREEDS,  AND  VARIETIES  OF  FOWLS      427 


avowed  object  in  every  case  is  to  make  the  bantam,  in  shape,  color, 
appurtenances,  —  everything  but  size,  —  just  like  the  large  breed 
that  it  resembles.    The  exact  likeness  desired  is  rarely  secured  — 
, ,     some   students  of   the    types   say,   never. 


FIG.  452.    Black  Cochin 
Bantam  cockerel1 


Usually  the  head  (and 
appurtenances),  wings, 
and  tail  of  the  bantam 
are  larger  in  proportion 
than  those  of  the  cor- 
responding ]arge  fowls, 
and  the  carriage  is  dif- 
ferent, particularly  in 
the  males,  which  are 


FIG.  453.    Black  Co- 
chin Bantam  pullet1 


the  most  insolent  and  pugnacious  of  birds,  often  domineering  over 
cocks  of  the  large  breeds,  and  always  ready  to  attack  anything. 
The  most  common  and  best-established  varieties  may  be  divided 
into  six  groups  :  Common,  Game,  Rose-Combed,  Polish,  Asiatic, 
and  Japanese. 

Common  bantams  are  usually  the  offspring  of  unions  of  ordi- 
nary Game  Bantam  males  with  small  mongrel  hens.  They  nearly 
always  show  something  of  the  Game  style, 
with  various  colors.  A 
family  so  produced  may 
continue  for  some  gen- 
erations, bred  for  small 
size,  with  little  attention 
to  color,  or  a  color  type 
may  be  fixed  without  try- 
ing to  conform  to  any 
popular  standard.  Thou- 
sands of  such  families 
appear  and  disappear. 

Game  Bantams  are  principally  of  two  kinds.  One,  which  may  be 
called  the  common  Game  Bantam,  is  a  miniature  of  the  Pit  Game. 
This  is  the  most  common  of  the  established  varieties,  the  black-red 
type  being  most  abundant.  The  Exhibition  Game  Bantam,  modeled 
after  the  large  Exhibition  Game,  is  a  great  favorite  with  fanciers 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  Dr.  J.  N.  MacRae,  Gait,  Ontario. 


FIG.  454.  White  Co- 
chin Bantam  pullet 


FIG.  455.   White  Cochin 
Bantam  cock 


428 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  456.    Buff  Cochin 
Bantam  cockerel1 


and  a  much  more  attractive  bird  than  the  large  type,  inasmuch 
as  the  proportions  which  in  a  large  bird  give  the  impression  of 
absurd  extension  of  extremities  produce  much  less  of  that  effect 
in  a  bird  too  small  to  contain,  in  any  part,  a  suggestion  of  utility. 

There  are  also  bantam  sizes  of  the  Malay 
and  of  the  Indian  Game. 

Rose-Combed  Bantams  are  of  two 
kinds,  —  the  Hamburg  type,  to  which 
the  description  "rose-combed"  has  been 
given  as  a  name,  and  the  Sebrights, 
which  take  their  name  from  Sir  John 
Sebright,  the  originator  of  the  type.  The 
Hamburg  type  is  bred  in  two  colors, 
black  and  white.  The  blacks,  with  their 
glossy  plumage,  red  rose  combs,  white 
ear  lobes,  and  dainty,  stylish  forms  are 
by  many  considered  the  most  beautiful  of  bantams.  Sebright  Ban- 
tams have  plumage  laced  like  that  of  the  Silver  and  Golden  Polish, 
with  which  the  two  varieties  correspond  in  color.  A  peculiarity  of 
the  breed  is  that  the  males  are  hen-feathered,  that  is,  lack  the 
flowing  hackle,  the  well-developed  tail,  and 
the  fine  back  and  saddle  feathers  which  nor- 
mally distinguish  the  plumage  of  the  cock. 
Polish  Bantams  need  no  other  description. 
Asiatic  Bantams  present  dwarf  forms  of  all 
the  breeds  classed  as  "Asiatics,"-  —Cochins, 
Brahmas,  and  Langshans.  The  Cochin  Ban- 
tams, first  called  Pekin  Bantams,  came  orig- 
inally from  China.  The  others  were  made  in 
England  and  America. 

Japanese  Bantams  are  of  a  very  different 
type  from  those  originating  on  the  continent 
of  Asia.  They  have  very  short  legs,  large  combs,  wings,  and  tails, 
and  a  very  erect  carriage,  bringing  the  head  and  tail  together. 
They  are  bred  in  various  colors,  but  only  the  black,  white,  and 
black -tailed  white  are  recognized  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection. 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  Sidney  Wells,  Newark,  Ohio. 

2  Owned  by  Louis  T.  C.  Loring,  Shrewsbury,  Mass.    Photograph  by  Graham. 


FIG.  457.  Light  Brahma 
Bantam  pullet2 


CHAPTER  XXII 

TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  PHEASANTS 

Of  these  four  kinds  of  poultry,  including  all  the  gallinaceous 
domestic  birds  other  than  fowls,  only  the  turkey  requires  special 
consideration  in  this  connection.  No  standards  for  the  others  have 
been  formulated,  though  there  are  varieties  in  all,  and  in  a  general 
way  breeders  mate  for  the  preservation  of  variety  characters.  This 
chapter  describes  turkeys  in  detail.  Notes  on  the  others  are  ap- 
pended to  it  as  the  most  appropriate  place  for  their  insertion. 

Turkeys.  At  the  discovery  of  America  the  turkey,  previously 
unknown  to  Europeans,  was  found  in  Mexico  and  Peru,  both  in  the 
wild  state  and  in  domestication.  The  most  authentic  accounts  place 
its  arrival  in  Spain,  England,  and  France  at  about  1624.  Before 
the  end  of  that  century  it  was  well  distributed  throughout  Europe. 
Wild  turkeys  are  still  found  in  mountainous  and  wooded  territory 
in  the  South  and  as  far  north  as  Pennsylvania.  Modern  European 
stocks  appear  to  have  been  derived  mostly  from  early  importations  ; 
American  stocks  usually  come  from  wild  stock  brought  into  domesti- 
cation. While  records  are  scant,  it  seems  quite  plain  that,  from  the 
time  of  the  settlement  of  the  country,  the  stocks  of  turkeys  in  sec- 
tions where  wild  turkeys  were  found  have  had  frequent  accessions  of 
wild  blood,  keeping  them  nearer  the  wild  color  and  type  ;  and  that 
when  the  wild  turkey  disappeared  from  a  locality,  the  domestic  stock 
usually  became  mongrelized,  but  occasionally  was  developed  as  a 
variety  with  distinctive  color  and  sometimes  with  modifications  of 
form.  There  are  not,  however,  such  variations  of  size  and  of  super- 
ficial shape  characters  in  turkeys  as  are  found  in  the  races  of  domes- 
tic fowls,  or  even  in  ducks  and  geese.  Of  differences  which  might  be 
made  the  basis  of  breed  distinctions  there  are  none  ;  color  variations 
are  few,  and  no  attempt  has  been  made  to  manipulate  color  patterns 
farther  than  by  selection  and  improvement  of  the  original.  Racial 
differences  are  of  slight  importance,  and  turkeys  are  commonly 
considered  as  of  one  breed  with  a  number  of  color  varieties. 

429 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


The  Wild  Turkey  as  frequently  seen  alive  on  farms  and  in  poul- 
try exhibitions,  and  dead  with  the  feathers  on  in  the  market,  is  about 
the  size  of  the  average  mongrel  turkey  found  on  farms,  but  more 
compactly  built,  higher  stationed,  and  closer  feathered,  appearing 
slimmer,  though  generally  heavier  than  domestic  birds  of  the  same 


FIG. -4-58!   Bronze  Turkey  cock.    (Photograph  by  E.  J,  Hall) 

-  \f-  • 

apparent  size.  In  color  it  is  a  black-bronze.  The  skin  of  the 
comb,  head,  and  wattle  is  a  darker,  more  purplish  red  than  in 
the  domestic  stock. 

The  Bronze  Turkey  is  the  wild  turkey,  of  the  type  just  described, 
as  it  develops  in  domestication,  under  highly  favorable  conditions 
of  life,  with  selection  for  the  improvement  and  greater  brilliancy 
of  the  original  color  and  markings.  The  type  seems  to  have  existed, 
pure  in  some  specimens  but  in  general  more  or  less  mixed  with 
stocks  longer  under  domestication  (and  often  degenerated),  for 
two  centuries  or  more,  but  not  until  the  modern  period  in  poultry 


TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  PHEASANTS     431 

culture  did  it  attract  special  attention.  Since  then  it  has  become  the 
leading  variety,  being  extensively  kept  as  a  pure  race  and  also  every- 
where used  to  grade  up  inferior  stocks.  Crosses  with  wild  stock 
are  made  at  intervals  by  many  breeders  of  Bronze  Turkeys.  In 
color  the  male  and  female  are  alike,  except  that  the  color  tone  of 


FIG.  459.    Bronze  Turkey  hen.    (Photograph  by  E.  J.  Hall) 

the  female  is  more  sober.  The  soft  feathers  are  dull  black  or  bronze, 
the  wide,  nearly  straight  tips  crossed  with  a  wide  black  band,  next 
to  which,  at  the  tip,  is  a  narrower  band  of  white.  The  different 
widths  of  these  bands  and  of  the  bronze  tints  in  different  sections 
give  varying  color  effects.  The  long  feathers  of  the  wings  and  tail 
are  barred  black,  or  brown,  and  white  ;  the  tips  of  the  tail  feathers 
are  banded  like  the  body  plumage. 

The  Narragansett  Turkey  is  probably  most  correctly  described 
as  a  race  produced  by  improvement  of  stock  somewhat  degenerated 
in  domestication.  It  originated  and  has  been  bred  chiefly  in  Rhode 


43 2  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Island  and  Connecticut,  taking  its  name  from  Narragansett  Bay. 
In  this  variety  the  bronze  and  brown  tints  are  largely  eliminated 
from  the  soft  feathers,  but  combine  with  the  black  in  the  stiff 
feathers  of  the  wings  and  tail,  while  the  colors  of  the  bands  at 
the  tips  of  the  feathers  are  reversed,  the  wide  bands  being  white 
and  the  narrow  one  at  the  tip,  black.  The  general  effect  is  gray. 


FIG.  460.   Narragansett  Turkey  cock 

The  Black  Turkey.  This  variety,  though  found  occasionally  in 
America,  has  been  developed  principally  in  Europe.  In  Spain  black 
is  said  to  be  the  predominant  color.  The  black  turkeys  of  Nor- 
mandy still  have  an  excellent  reputation.  In  England  the  finest 
specimens  of  the  type  were  long  grown  in  Norfolk,  and  in  America 
black  turkeys  are  still  sometimes  called  Norfolk  Turkeys,  but  the 
English  race  is  said  to  be  nearly  extinct.  Black  color  probably 


TURKEYS,,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  PHEASANTS      433 


occurs  often  in  wild  turkeys  and,  mingling  with  the  bronze,  is  doubt- 
less a  most  potent  agent  in  keeping  the  color  darker  than  that  of 
the  domestic  bronze  selected  for  lighter,  more  brilliant  color. 

The  White  Turkey.  When  both  white  and  black  varieties  of  a 
bird  are  found,  it  is  usual  to  consider  the  white  a  sport  from  the 
black.  While  such 
sports  may  occur,  the 
history  of  white  vari- 
eties of  fowls  shows 
that  they  are  largely 
made  up  of  white 
mongrels  which  ap- 
proach the  desired 
type.  The  white  birds 
derived  directly  from 

mixed  colors  of  the 

I 

same   race   seem  to 

have  come  usually 
from  the  lightest-col- 
ored specimens  of  the 
parent  stock.  Hence, 
in  the  case  of  the 
white  turkey  it  is 
more  reasonable  ,to 
suppose  that  the 
white  turkeys  were 
derived  by  selection 
from  the  same  general 
stock  as  the  blacks, 
than  to  assume  that 
they  came  from  the 
latter  as  sports,  especially  as  no  cases  of  sporting  are  recorded. 
The  name  "  White  Holland  "  has  been  given  to  the  white  vari- 
ety of  turkey  because  the  color  was  common  in  Holland,  but  it  may 
safely  be  asserted  that  the  greater  part  of  the  white  turkeys  in 
America  have  been  derived  by  selection  from  flocks  in  which  gray 
in  various  shades  was  the  prevailing  color.  In  nearly  all  such 
flocks  white  specimens  occasionally  appear. 


FIG.  461.    White  Turkey  cock.    (Photograph  by 
E.J.Hall) 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

The  Slate  Turkey  corresponds  in  color  to  the  blue  races  of  fowls 
and  unquestionably  comes  from  a  cross  of  black  and  white.  The 
color  is  rare,  and  it  is  doubtful  whether  it  should  be  considered  a 
variety  in  the  proper  sense  of  the  term.  A  few  flocks  are  bred  for 
preservation  of  this  type,  but  its  scarcity  and  the  suddenness  of 
appearances  of  small  exhibits  in  the  shows  indicates  that  most  of 
the  stock  is  cross  bred  from  black  and  white. 


FIG.  462.    Bronze  Turkey  hen.    (Photograph  from  Rhode  Island  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station) 

The  Buff  or  Red  Turkeys  are  produced  by  the  elimination  of 
black  in  the  wild  or  the  bronze  turkey,  the  red  shades  remaining  and 
by  selection  being  made  more  intense  and  distributed  more  widely. 
Buff  birds,  as  well  as  gray  and  buff  mixed,  appear  frequently  in 
mongrel  flocks.  The  red  turkeys  produced  at  different  times  in 
different  places  in  this  country  probably  came  from  crosses  of  such 
buff  turkeys  with  the  bronze,  and  from  personal  or  local  selection  of 
the  type.  In  none  of  the  so-called  buff  turkeys  is  the  color  as  uniform 


TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  PHEASANTS     435 


FIG.  463.   Bronze  Turkey  cock :  one  of  the  mammoths.   (Photograph  by  E.J.  Hall) 

as  in  yellow  mongrel  fowls.  The  tail  and  wings  are  mostly  white, 
and  the  buff  in  other  sections  patchy  and  uneven.  The  variety 
known  as  the  Bourbon  Red  Turkey  is  supposed  to  have  come 
from  a  cross  of  Bronze  on  mongrel  buff  stock. 


436 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


NOTE.  The  Bronze  Turkey  is  everywhere  recognized  as  altogether  the  best 
existing  type.  Considering  its  properties  collectively,  it  may  well  be  doubted 
whether  the  type  can  be  improved  upon.  It  is  a  rugged  race,  growing  sometimes 
to  great  size  but  on  the  average  not  up  to  the  standards  for  exhibition  weights 
for  other  varieties. 


TABLE  XXII.    AMERICAN  STANDARD  WEIGHTS  OF  TURKEYS 


Co 

ck 

Adult 

Yearling 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Bronze     

36 

33 

25 

20 

15 

Narragansett    

30 

20 

IS 

12 

Buff,  Slate,  and  Black  .    . 

27   . 

18 

IS 

12 

White  

26 

18 

18 

I  ° 

The  Bronze,  to  carry  its  greater  weight,  is  a  heavier-boned  turkey  than  the 
others.  In  the  largest  specimens  (usually  old  males)  the  meat  is  likely  to  be 
coarse-fibered ;  in  ordinary  comparisons  of  average  birds  no  difference  in  this 
quality  is  noted.  For  table  form,  without  regard  to  size,  the  favorite  type  of 
the  Narragansett  is  the  finest  American  type  of  turkey,  closely  resembling  in 
shape  the  Cambridge  Bronze  of  England.  The  shape  of  the  Narragansett  is 
as  obviously  due  to  selection  for  abundance  of  breast  meat  as  the  vigor  and 
size  of  the  Bronze  are  to  vigorous  wild  blood  and  to  favorable  conditions  in 

domestication.  These  are  prac- 
tically the  only  variety  differ- 
ences, other  than  color,  found 
in  turkeys. 

Peafowls.  Peafowls  are 
supposed  to  be  natives  of 
Java  and  Ceylon.  They 
have  been  domesticated  in 
Asia  and  Europe  since  very 
early  times.  The  most  fa- 
miliar variety  is  that  known 
as  the  common  peafowl, 
about  as  large  as  a  medium-sized  turkey,  the  adult  male  having 
gorgeous,  iridescent  blue-green  plumage,  the  female,  grayish 
brown.  A  white  variety  is  also  frequently  seen.  These  are  the  only 
kinds  requiring  special  mention,  although  several  other  varieties 


FIG.  464.  White  Guinea  hen  with  brood 


TURKEYS,  PEAFOWLS,  GUINEAS,  PHEASANTS          437 

are  found  in  exhibitions.   The  male  does  not  get  his  full  adult 
plumage  until  the  third  year. 

Guineas.  Guinea  fowls  are  natives  of  Africa.  They  are  supposed 
to  have  been  brought  to  America  by  the  Spaniards  very  soon  after 
the  discovery  of  the  New  World.  The  familiar  varieties  are  the 
common  gray,  or  Pearl  Guinea,  which  has  bluish-gray  plumage  with 
white  spots,  and  the  White  Guinea.  Cross-bred  birds  from  these 


FIG.  465.    Pearl  Guinea  Fowl  at  Brook  View  Farm,  Newbury,  Massachusetts 

two  varieties  sometimes  show  part  white  and  part  gray  with  white 
spots.    There  is  said  to  be  also  a  white  variety  with  dark  spots. 

Pheasants.  The  most  familiar  variety  of  pheasant  is  the  Ring- 
neck,  so  called  from  a  white  ring  about  the  neck  of  birds  of  the 
variety  as  they  originally  came  from  China.  In  England  the  stock 
has  been  crossed  with  other  varieties,  and  in  what  are  known  as 
English  Ringnecks  and  English  Pheasants  the  ring  is  usually 
absent  and  there  are  other  differences  due  to  crossing  with  other 
varieties.  These  are  all  comparatively  plain  birds.  There  are  many 
other  varieties,  some  of  which  are  of  strikingly  beautiful  plumage. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 

Considered  with  reference  to  sources  from  which  stock  was  ob- 
tained, the  races  of  domestic  ducks  bred  for  economic  purposes  are 
of  three  distinct  types.  Taking  them  as  they  are,  we  find  but  two 
types.  To  one  of  these  belong  all  economic  races  of  European 

and  of  Asiatic 
derivation  ;  to 
the  other,  the 
Muscovy  Duck 
(a  native  of 
South  Amer- 
ica), which,  like 
the  turkey,  was 
given  a  name 
that  suggested 
eastern  Europe 
as  the  place 
of  origin.  The 
more  common 
types  of  orna- 
mental ducks  are  plainly  of  the  same  origin  as  the  large  races.  They 
are  dwarfed  types,  or  "bantam  ducks."  The  rarer  and  more  bril- 
liantly colored  kinds  often  seen  in  aviaries  are  mostly  captive  wild 
birds,  though  some,  as  the  Mandarin,  are  said  to  be  domesticated 
in  the  countries  from  which  they  came. 

The  common  wild  duck.  The  Mallard,  or  common  wild  duck, 
is  generally  accepted  as  the  ancestor  of  all  economic  races  of  ducks, 
with  the  exception  of  the  Muscovy.  Wild  specimens  are  still  fre- 
quently captured  and  brought  into  domestication,  and  after  several 
generations  become  so  much  increased  in  size  that  they  will  pass 
readily  for  small  specimens  of  the  Rouen  Duck,  which  the  Mallard 
closely  resembles  in  color. 

438 


FIG.  466.   Domesticated  Mallard  Ducks.    Brook  View  Farm, 
Newbury,  Massachusetts 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 


439 


Common  domestic  ducks.  Our  common  ducks,  sometimes  called 
"  puddle  ducks,"  are  a  type  analogous  to  the  common  fowls  previous 
to  the  introduction  of  improved  stocks.  It  is  rarely  possible  to  de- 
termine satisfactorily  whether  any  particular  stock  of  ducks  of  this 
type  now  seen  is  of  the  mongrel  stock  which  has  been  distributed 
throughout  Europe  from  very  early  times  or  whether  it  has  degen- 
erated from  stock  improved  within  the  last  fifty  or  sixty  years. 
Twenty-five  or 
thirty  years 
ago  most  of 
the  common 
ducks  were  un- 
doubtedly free 
from  the  influ- 
ence of  im- 
proved stocks. 
These  ducks 
were  of  various 
colors,  about 
half  the  size  of 
the  Pekin  and 
Rouen,  slow  of 
growth,  gener- 
ally inferior  as 
layers,  and  of 
but  little  com- 
mercial impor- 
tance. So  far  as  known,  no  effort  was  made  to  improve  them  in 
America ;  in  Europe  a  number  of  breeds  were  developed. 

Improved  races  of  ducks.  Improved  stocks  of  ducks  are  of 
three  general  types,  —  the  meat  type,  the  laying  type,  and  the 
ornamental  type. 

Meat  types.  As  most  numerous,  of  most  importance,  and  also 
best  showing  the  evolution  of  types,  the  table  types  of  ducks  are 
considered  first.  The  races  of  this  type  are  the  Rouen,  Aylesbury, 
Cayuga>  Blue  Swedish,  Blue  Termonde,  Pekin,  and  Muscovy. 

The  Rouen  Duck.  The  Rouen  Duck  bears  much  the  same  rela- 
tion to  the  wild  Mallard  as  the  Dorking  and  Houdan  fowls  to  the 


FIG.  467.    Rouen  Ducks.    Brook  View  Farm,  Newbury, 
Massachusetts 


440 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


initial  type  of  fowl.  While  it  is  entirely  possible  that  this  variety 
has  been  developed  direct  from  the  Mallard,  it  is  much  more  prob- 
able that  it  was  developed,  by  long-continued  selection  for  table 
qualities,  from  common  ducks  of  the  same  color,  just  as  the  fowls  of 
the  European  meat  type  were  developed  from  mongrel  fowls.  The 
type  was  developed  especially  in  the  north  of  France,  and  takes  its 
name  from  the  city  of  Rouen.1  The  body  color  of  the  male  is  gray  ; 
the  back  is  quite  dark,  with  a  greenish  coat,  or  sheen,  becoming 

darker  green 
near  the  tail ; 
the  under  parts 
are  very  much 
lighter,  the  un- 
der sides  of 
the  wings  and 
some  of  the 
feathers  under 
the  wings  be- 
ing white;  the 
breast  is  claret- 
colored  ;  the 
head  and  the 
upper  part  of 
the  neck  are 
green,  a  white 
ring  separat- 
ing the  green 

from  the  body  and  breast  colors,  which  extend  to  the  lower  part  of 
the  neck  ;  the  tail  and  wings  show  mixed  gray  and  brown,  with 
some  green ;  the  wing  when  folded  shows  a  rich  blue-green  bar 
(called  the  "  ribbon  ")  with  narrow  white  bars  on  either  side.  The 
female  has  penciled  brown  plumage,  the  general  color  tone  of  which 
is  strikingly  like  that  of  the  females  in  black-red  types  of  fowls,  and 
has  the  same  blue-green  and  white  bars  seen  on  the  male.  A  variety 

1  This  is  the  view  of  most  of  the  earlier  writers,  and  considering  the  nearness 
of  that  town  to  Paris,  the  great  poultry  market,  and  the  custom  of  giving  names 
of  towns  or  districts  to  poultry  for  which  they  became  celebrated,  there  seems 
no  good  reason  for  the  efforts  of  later  writers  to  make  the  name  a  corruption  of 
"Rhone"  or  "roan." 


FIG.  468.    Cayuga  Ducks.    (Photograph  by  E.  J.  Hall) 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 


441 


of  the  Rouen,  known  as  the  Duclair- Rouen,  resembling  it  in  color 
but  having  a  white  neck  and  breast,  is  regarded  as  of  the  same 
original  stock,  unimproved  by  fancier's  selection  and  not  crossed 
with  the  Mallard,  which  was  used  in  the  Rouen  to  give  brilliancy 
of  color.  The  bill  of  the  Rouen  is  greenish  in  the  male  and 
brown  in  the  female ;  the  legs  and  feet  are  orange  with  a  green 
or  brown  shade. 

The  Aylesbury  Duck.    The  Aylesbury  Duck  takes  its  name  from 
the  vale  of  Aylesbury  in  England.    The  white  ducks  of  that  district 


FIG.  469.    Blue  Swedish  Ducks.    (Photograph  from  owner,  Sunswick  Farm, 
Plainfield,  New  Jersey) 

were  long  celebrated  for  their  quality,  and  in  time  the  name  came 
to  be  applied  generally,  in  England,  to  large  white  ducks.  No 
definite  accounts  of  their  origin  are  given.  The  natural  inference 
is  that  this  breed  was  composed  of  white  individuals  from  various 
sources.  Such  a  race  might  have  been  made  by  improvement  and 
selection  without  recourse  to  crosses  with  other  improved  races, 
but  it  is  believed  that  both  the  Rouen  and  Pekin  have  been  crossed 
with  the  Aylesbury  to  restore  vitality  lost  through  indifferent  breed- 
ing. The  plumage  is  white  throughout,  the  bill  flesh-colored,  the 
legs  and  feet  pale  orange. 


442 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  470.    Pekin  drake.   White  Birch  Poultry 
Farm,  Bridgewater,  Massachusetts 


FIG.  471.    Pekin  duck.    White  Birch  Poultry 
Farm,  Bridgewater,  Massachusetts 


The  Merchtem  Duck.  A 

white  Belgian  type  closely 
resembling  the  Aylesbury 
is  called  the  Merchtem 
Duck.  The  Belgian  bird 
is  a  little  smaller  and  has 
blue  legs  and  a  dark  bean 
on  the  bill. 

The  Cayuga  Duck.  The 
Cayuga  Duck  is  a  large 
black  duck  taking  its  name 
from  Cayuga  County  in 
New  York,  where  it  appears 
to  have  been  developed  as 
a  local  variety  about  1850, 
though  it  attracted  no  at- 
tention beyond  that  vicinity 
until  ten  or  fifteen  years 
later.  Stories  of  its  origin 
attributing  the  black  color 
to  the  Black  East  Indian 
Duck  (also  to  a  black  duck 
from  Brazil  known  as  the 
Buenos  Airean)  may  be  re- 
garded as  of  very  doubtful 
authenticity,  except  per- 
haps as  to  certain  stocks. 
Black  ducks  are  frequently 
found  in  all  races  where  the 
colors  are  various.  The 
color  is  one  which  would 
naturally  occur  in  the  varia- 
tions of  the  color  of  the  com- 
mon wild  duck  in  domesti- 
cation. There  is  no  warrant 
for  considering  this  variety 
as  essentially  different  from 
other  improved  races. 


T,YPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 


443 


The  Blue  Swedish  Duck.  In  England  and  America  the  name 
11  Blue  Swedish  "  is  given  to  blue  or  slate  ducks  developed  as  a  color 
variety.  It  is  said  that  the  color  has  long  been  popular  in  parts  of 
Russia,  Scandinavia,  and  Germany,  and  that  it  has  been  frequently 
seen  in  the  flocks  of  Belgium.  It  occurs  occasionally  in  all  stocks 
of  various  colors,  but  not  with  the  depth  and  uniformity  of  shade 
and  the  peculiar  white  bib  on  the  neck  and  the  two  white  flight 
feathers  which  have  been  made  standard  markings  in  this  variety. 


FIG.  472.    Colored  Muscovy  Ducks.    (Photograph  by  E.  J.  Hall) 

The  Blue  Termonde  Duck.  The  Blue  Termonde'  is  a  race  recently 
developed  as  an  established  type  'in  Belgium.  It  is  a  very  large 
duck,  similar  in  color  and  evidently  near  kin  to  the  Blue  Swedish, 
but  with  the  white  throat  an  irregular  feature. 

The  Pekin  Duck.  Brought  to  England  from  Pekin,  China,  in 
1874,  and  to  America  in  the  next  year,  the  Pekin  Duck  had  an 
even  more  marked  influence  on  duck  culture  in  this  country  than 
the  Asiatic  type  of  fowl  had  on  the  improvement  of  fowls.  Like 
the  Asiatic  fowls,  the  Pekin  Duck  was  of  large  size  and  extremely 
hardy.  It  is  the  common  duck  of  China.  Its  origin  is  probably 


444 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


similar  to  that  of  the  early  European  races,  ancestral  lines  meeting 
not  in  any  domesticated  stock  but  remotely  somewhere  in  the  evolu- 
tion of  the  wild  duck.  As  nothing  is  known  of  other  varieties  of 
ducks  in  China,  the  Pekin  is  here  usually  considered  a  white  breed. 
The  history  of  other  races  indicates  that  it  is  probably  the  white 
variety  of  a  race  which,  when  first  domesticated,  broke  up  into  various 
colors.  From  the  extent  to  which  it  has  displaced  other  races  in 
America  and  some  parts  of  Europe,  it  is  easy  to  suppose  that  if 
in  China  there  early  arose  a  popular  preference  for  white  ducks, 
this  color  long  ago  became  dominant  or  exclusive. 


FIG.  473.   White  Muscovy  Ducks.  (Photograph  from  owner,  Brook  View  Farm, 
Newbury,  Massachusetts) 

The  Muscovy  Duck.  The  Muscovy  Duck  is  a  native  of  South 
America,  introduced  to  Europeans,  as  is  supposed,  sometime  in  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  name  is  a  corruption  of  "  musk  duck." 
This  duck  is  in  several  respects  very  different  from  the  common 
wild  duck  and  the  races  derived  from  it,  and  is  sometimes  described 
as  a  distinct  species.  Many  authorities  have  declared  that  when 
crossed  with  other  ducks  the  offspring  are  sterile.  It  seems,  how- 
ever, to  be  well-established  that  the  bybirds  will  breed  freely  with 
either  parent  race,  if  not  so  readily  among  themselves.  The  most 
conspicuous  peculiarity  of  this  race  is  that  the  head  and  face  are 
partly  bare,  as  in  the  normal  fowl,  the  skin  being  a  brilliant  red, 
roughly  carunculated  and  having  a  protuberance  above  the  beak 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 


445 


corresponding  to  the  comb  in  fowls.  There  is  a  tuft  of  feathers  on 
the  head  which  can  be  raised  or  depressed  at  will.1  Another  con- 
spicuous feature  is  the  difference  in  the  size  of  the  sexes,  the  males 
being  commonly  much  larger  than  the  females.  The  Muscovy 
Duck  has  greater  power  of  flight  than  other  domestic  ducks,  and 
frequently  perches  on  branches  or  elevated  places.  The  color  of 
the  wild  race  is  black  with  some  white  on  the  head.  In  domes- 
tication black,  black  and  white,  blue,  and  white  are  found.  The 
American  Standard  varieties  are.  the  colored  (black  and  white)  and 
the  white. 

TABLE  XXIII.    AMERICAN  STANDARD  WEIGHTS  OF  DUCKS 


Variety 

Adult  drake 

Young  drake 

Adult  duck 

Young  duck 

Pekin      
Aylesbury 

Pounds 

8 

Pounds 

7 
8 

Pounds 

7 
8 

Powids 

6 

7 

Rouen    

Q 

8 

8 

7 

Cavusra 

8 

7 

7 

6 

Blue  Swedish     
Muscovy 

8 
10 

6L 
8 

7 

7 

Si 
6 

NOTE.  The  improved  races  of  ducks  are  all  rapid  growers,  and  of  large  size 
compared  with  the  common  duck.  For  special  duck  plants  the  Pekin  is  the 
only  duck  now  considered  in  America.  Its  color,  hardiness,  fecundity,  and 
docile  disposition  make  it  far  superior  to  any  of  the  others  for  the  conditions 
of  production  on  a  large  scale  and  for  the  requirements  of  the  market.  Prior 
to  the  advent  of  the  Pekin,  the  White  Muscovy  and  the  Aylesbury  Duck  were 
used  by  growers  producing  for  the  New  York  market.  The  Aylesbury  in  this 
country  has  never  been  a  favorite.  At  different  times,  duck  growers  have 
tried  the  experiment  of  crossing  the  Aylesbury  and  Pekin,  but  have  invaria- 
bly discarded  the  results,  considering  the  produce  inferior  to  the  Pekin.  In 
England  the  modern  Aylesbury  has  some  Pekin  blood,  but  how  much  it 
is  impossible  to  say.  Aylesbury  breeders  declare  that  there  is  very  little. 
Others  assert  that  the  modern  Aylesbury  is  practically  nothing  else  than  a 

1  This  is  true  as  to  the  feathers  on  the  heads  of  fowls,  ducks,  and  geese,  but 
wlien  there  are  only  a  few  very  small,  short  feathers  on  the  head,  they  simply 
appear  rough  when  elevated.  I  have  frequently  observed  Pekin  Ducks  with  the 
feathers  on  the  head  elevated  so  that  it  appeared  deformed.  In  some  the  action, 
or  attitude,  was  so  constant  that  it  was  practically  a  deformity ;  in  others  it  was 
only  occasional. 


446 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Pekin  with  white  skin  and  pale  bill.  The  experience  of  American  breeders  with 
Aylesbury  crosses  cannot  be  taken  as  conclusively  showing  racial  differences, 
for  similar  results  might  have  followed  the  importation  of  Pekins  of  European 
stock.  It  is  generally  admitted  that  the  Pekin  Duck  has  reached  its  highest 
development  in  this  country.1  Of  other  races  of  this  class  the  Rouen  ranks 
first,  and  is  considered  by  many  actually  much  superior  in  meat  quality  to  the 
Pekin,  especially  when  full  grown.  At  that  stage  it  is  said  to  dress  more  easily 
than  the  white  duck.  The  black  (Cayuga)  and  blue  (Swedish)  ducks  have  their 
admirers,  but  make  little  progress  in  popular  favor.  The  breeding  of  races  of 
this  class  other  than  the  Pekin  is  largely  in  the  hands  of  fanciers.  The  shape 

of  all  these  ducks  (except  the  Muscovy) 
is  much  the  same  (the  body  long,  broad, 
and  deep,  the  breast  full  and  promi- 
nent, the  keel  well  developed),  espe- 
cially in  old  birds. 

In  the  Muscovy  there  is  greater 
breadth,  with  less  depth  of  body  and 
little  keel.  The  chief  shape  difference 
in  ducks  of  this  general  type  is  the 
carriage  of  the  body,  and  this  differ- 
ence, it  should  be  observed,  is  artificial, 
the  typical  carriage  being  designated 
largely  for  the  purpose  of  maintaining 
a  semblance  of  breed  difference  in 
varieties  which  in  practical  breeding 
tend  to  become  alike.  The  carriage 
of  body  in  American  Standard  exhi- 
bition ducks  of  this  type  is  Rouen, 
Aylesbury,  Cayuga,  Muscovy,  and  Blue 


FIG.  474.    Indian  Runner  drake  (old), 

White  Birch  Poultry  Farm,  Bridgewater, 

Massachusetts 


Swedish,  nearly  horizontal ;  Pekin,  a 
little  elevated  in  front.  The  elevated 
carriage  of  the  Pekin  is  more  charac- 
teristic of  the  male  than  of  the  female, 

and  tends  to  disappear  with  increase  of  weight.  The  typical  carriage  as  shown  in 
model  illustrations  is  usually  the  extreme  pose  of  the  bird  in  an  attitude  which 
emphasizes  the  desired  feature.  In  every  point  of  shape  (including  size),  varia- 
tions in  individuals  and  stocks  are  constantly  found  to  be  much  greater  than  the 
differences  between  representatives  of  the  breed  type.  As  layers  the  Pekins  are 
rated  much  superior  to  other  large  races,  the  Muscovy  at  the  foot  of  the  list. 

1  In  1907  Mr.  S.  Sato,  of  Tokyo,  Japan,  visited  this  country  to  investigate 
methods  of  poultry  culture  and  to  buy  poultry  —  among  other  kinds,  Pekin  Ducks. 
I  learned  from  him  at  that  time  that  the  white  ducks  of  China  were  so  much  inferior 
to  the  American  Pekins  that  they  were  not  considered  desirable  to  improve  the 
stock  in  Japan.  According  to  Mr.  Sato,  not  only  this  race  of  ducks  but  all  Chinese 
fowls  came  to  Japan  by  way  of  America. 


TYPES  AND  BREEDS  OF  DUCKS 


447 


Laying-type  ducks.  The  egg-type  duck  is  a  type  developed  in 
Belgium,  Holland,  and  northern  France  as  a  common,  very  hardy 
duck ;  it  makes  rapid  growth,  especially  the  first  five  or  six  weeks, 
and  is  meaty,  though  small  in  comparison  with  those  just  described  ; 
it  is  an  early  layer  and  very  prolific.  On  the  continent  these  ducks 
are  of  all  colors.  There  seems  little  doubt  that  they  have  furnished 
the  foundation  stock  for  the  Blue  Swedish,  the  Buff,  and  the  Indian 
Runner  ducks.  They  still  afford  material  for  new  varieties. 

The  Indian  Runner  Duck.  In 
England  and  America  the  In- 
dian Runner  Duck  was  intro- 
duced to  the  public  as  a  native 
of  India,  but  .in  view  of  the 
positive  testimony1  on  that  point 
it  can  hardly  be  doubted  that  it 
is  simply  an  improved  color 
type  of  the  ducks  from  that  part 
of  the  Continent  directly  oppo- 
site the  south  of  England.  The 
peculiar  erect  carriage  is  like 
that  of  the  closely  allied  domes- 
tic Penguin  duck.  Those  who 
attribute  this  character  to  a  wild 
ancestral  race  are  evidently  not 
aware  that  the  "  wild  penguin 
duck  "  of  early  poultry  writers 
and  some  naturalists  was  a 

fiction.  In  England  the  continental  stock  was  sometimes  crossed 
with  common  English  ducks.  American  Standard  weights  for  this 
variety  are  drake,  4^-  pounds ;  duck,  4  pounds.  The  body  is  long 
and  narrow,  the  breast  well  developed.  The  standard  color  is  fawn 
(preferred)  or  gray  and  white,  in  a  peculiar  pattern,  the  dark  color 
occurring  in  patches  on  the  crown  and  cheeks,  and  on  the  back, 
breast,  and  fore  part  of  the  body  like  a  jacket.  As  layers  they  surpass 

1  M.  Louis  Vander  Snickt,  of  Belgium,  in  Chasse  et  Peche,  in  1900,  stated  very 
emphatically  that  the  Indian  Runner  Duck  was  identical  with  the  ducks  of  the 
same  type  common  in  the  Netherlands.  Against  such  authority,  stories  of  im- 
portations from  India  (coupled  with  the  information  that  in  their  alleged  native 
land  the  race  is  very  rare)  carry  little  weight. 


FIG.  475.   Indian  Runner  drake  and  duck 
•  (young).    (Photograph  from  owner,  Clay- 
ton I.  Bullard,  White  Pine,  Tennessee) 


448  POULTRY  CULTURE 

all  other  ducks  known  in  America,  though  the  average  is  far  below 
the  large  yields  which  are  frequently  reported  (two  hundred  eggs 
or  more  per  bird  per  year).  They  are  used  to  some  extent  for 
broiler  ducks,  dressing  very  plump  and  meaty  at  from  2\  to  3 
pounds  each  at  six  weeks  of  age. 

Common  ornamental  ducks.  Ornamental  ducks  include  the 
Crested  White  Duck  and  three  varieties  of  small  ducks  which  are 
all  of  the  same  type,  though  classed  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection 
as  two  breeds,  of  which  one  has  two  varieties. 

The  Crested  White  Duck.  As  usually  found,  the  Crested  White 
Duck  is  a  medium-sized  duck,  though  the  American  Standard 
weights  make  it  the  same  weight  as  the  Pekin.  They  are  bred 
only  as  curiosities.  Although  white  is  the  only  color  recognized  as 
standard,  other  colors  occur.  The  type  seems  to  have  been  de- 
veloped in  common  European  ducks  centuries  ago. 

Call  Ducks.  Gray  and  White  Call  Ducks  and  Black  East  India 
Ducks  are  of  substantially  the  same  size  and  type.  The  Gray  Call 
Duck  closely  resembles  the  wild  Mallard,  and  the  coloration  fixed 
by  fanciers  is  the  same  as  that  of  the  Rouen.  The  White  Call 
Duck  is  of  the  same  derivation,  and  though  given  another  breed 
name,  the  Black  East  India  Duck  is  plainly  of  the  same  stock. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

GEESE  AND  SWANS 

Domestic  geese  in  America  are  mostly  of  European  derivation, 
but  there  are  also  races  from  Asia,  and  the  American  wild  goose 
is  quite  extensively  bred  in  confinement  in  some  districts,  and  in 
such  places  is  largely  used  to  cross  with  domesticated  races.  Euro- 
pean and  Asiatic  types  are  supposed  to  be  from  different  wild  types, 
but  from  the  fact  that  they  interbreed  freely  it  is  assumed  that  these 
must  have  been  varieties  of  the  same  species.  While  some  races 
of  geese  are  quite  regularly  better  layers  than  others,  and  occasion- 
ally an  individual  gives  large  egg  production,  laying  qualities  have 
not  been  sufficiently  developed  in  any  race  to  justify  its  description 
as  a  laying  type.  Geese  are  kept  in  domestication  usually  for  their 
flesh,  but  occasionally  for  ornament.  The  most  appropriate  classi- 
fication, therefore,  is  to  make  two  divisions,  economic  and  ornamental. 

Economic  races  of  geese.  The  most  important  races  of  geese 
are  the  European  races.  The  influence  of  other  blood  on  stocks  in 
the  country  at  large  is  practically  negligible.  Our  common  geese 
came  with  the  early  settlers  from  Europe.  Our  popular  improved- 
races  are  bred  as  received  in  later  days  from  the  parts  of  Europe 
where  they  were  developed. 

The  common  geese.  The  greater  part  of  our  stocks  of  geese 
apparently  still  retain  the  type  and  characteristics  of  the  geese  com- 
mon in  Europe  since  long  before  the  beginnings  of  history.  The 
graylag  goose  is  the  wild  variety  from  which  it  is  supposed  that 
the  common  domestic  stock  is  derived.  Except  where  selection  for 
white  has  been  made,  gray  and  mixed  gray  and  white  are  the  pre- 
vailing colors.  While  inferior  in  size  to  the  largest  improved  races, 
the  common  geese  are  large  enough,  when  bred  and  grown  well, 
to  answer  ordinary  market  requirements,  and  are  extremely  hardy. 

The  Roman  Goose.  The  Roman  Goose  is  supposed  to  be  the  old- 
est of  the  improved  varieties.  Although  the  Italians  gave  little  atten- 
tion to  color  in  fowls,  it  appears  that  from  very  early  times  white  was 

449 


450  POULTRY  CULTURE 

a  preferred  color,  and  is  to-day  the  prevailing  color  of  geese  in  those 
parts  of  Italy  where  geese  are  grown.  A  black-  and-  white  or  gray 
variety  is  also  found  in  parts  of  Italy.  Roman  Geese  are  said  to 
be  precocious  and  prolific  layers,  from  sixty  to  one  hundred  ten 
eggs  from  October  to  June  being  given  as  the  recorded  production 


FIG.  476.   Emden  Geese 

of  individuals.  In  size  and  general  appearance  they  closely  resem- 
ble our  common  geese.  As  a  variety  they  are  little  known  outside 
of  Italy,  but  some  authorities  believe  that  the  race  has  been  an 
important  factor  in  the  development  of  common  stocks  throughout 
southern  Europe. 

The  Pomeranian  Goose.    The  Pomeranian  Goose  (also  called  the 
Saddleback  Goose)  is  a  common  variety,  apparently  an  improvement 


GEESE  AND  SWANS 


451 


of  ordinary  stock,  found  throughout  Germany  and  southeastern 
Europe.  In  size  it  is  intermediate  between  our  common  geese 
and  the  heavier  improved  European  varieties.  The  color  of  the 
goose  is  usually  white ;  of  the  gander,  white  with  gray  head,  neck, 
back,  and  wings.  While  not  known  (under  this  name)  in  Amer- 
ica, the  variety  is  of  special  interest  as  the  probable  progenitor  of 


FIG.  477.   Toulouse  Geese 

both  the  Emden  and  the  Toulouse.  As  the  goose  has  been  more 
of  a  favorite  in  communities  settled  by  German-speaking  races 
than  elsewhere  in  the  United  States,  it  is  entirely  probable  that 
some  of  this  stock  has  from  time  to  time  been  brought  here  and 
merged  with  our  common  stock. 

The  Emden  Goose.    The  first  of  highly  improved   European 
stocks  of  geese  to  reach  America  was  an  Emden.    The  importation 


452 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


by  James  Sisson  of  Rhode  Island  in  1826  is  better  authenti- 
cated than  the  claim  that  a  Colonel  Jaques  of  Massachusetts  had 
imported  some  in  1821,  though  that  claim  may  be  correct.  It  is 
even  quite  possible,  as  the  account  of  the  introduction  of  Asiatic 
fowls  shows,  that  occasional  importations  were  made  earlier.  At 
first  the  Emdens  were  generally  called  here  Bremen  geese,  Bremen 
being  the  port  from  which  the  first  importation  on  record  came. 
In  England  they  were  called  Emden,  importations  to  that  country 
coming,  as  is  supposed,  from  the  port  of  Emden.  The  Emden 
Goose  is  described  sufficiently  for  identification  anywhere  as  a  large 
white  goose.  The  size  is  easily  developed  from  the  Pomeranian 


FIG.  478.    Captive  Wild  Geese  used  as  decoys  at  shooting  stand  of  C.  M.  Bryant, 
East  Weymouth,  Massachusetts.    (Photograph  from  C.  M.  Bryant) 

by  selection  or  by  crossing.  According  to  the  descriptions  of  early 
Emden  geese  in  this  country,  those  first  imported  were  not  invariably 
white,  but  often  showed  some  gray. 

The  Toulouse  Goose.  The  Toulouse  Goose  takes  its  name  from 
the  city  of  Toulouse,  the  capital  of  a  department  in  southern  France 
noted  for  its  geese.  It  was  brought  to  England  probably  about 
1835-1845,  and  to  this  country  from  England  many  years  later. 
It  is  not  mentioned  by  Cocke  (1843),  and  references  to  it  in  the 
decade  following  1850  plainly  show  that  the  writers  were  depend- 
ent on  English  authors  for  their  descriptions.  It  is  probable  that 
the  variety  became  known  here  either  in  the  latter  part  of  that  dec- 
ade or  early  in  the  following  decade.  Like  the  Emden,  it  is  suffi- 
ciently described  for  identification  by  a  general  description  of  size 


GEESE  AND  SWANS 


453 


and  color.  A  very  large,  massive  gray  goose  can  hardly  fail  to  be 
a  Toulouse,  or  a  grade  bird  not  distinguishable  from  the  pure  or 
standard-bred  type  of  the  breed. 

Asiatic  types  of  geese.   The  Asiatic  types  of  geese  include  three 
varieties,  two  of  which  are  classed  as  China  Geese,  and  the  third  as 


FIG.  479.    White  China  Geese.    (Photograph  from  owner,  Charles  McClave, 
New  London,  Ohio) 

the  African  Goose.  References  to  these  by  early  American  writers 
leave  no  doubt  that  the  type  was  quite  well  known  through  scattered 
specimens  before  1840.  It  is  quite  reasonable  to  suppose  that  from 
an  early  period  in  the  trade  with  the  Orient,  Asiatic  races  of  geese, 
like  the  Chinese  fowls,  were  brought  in  at  intervals  by  vessels  trad- 
ing with  China.  The  striking  peculiarity  of  this  type  is  the  knob, 
or  protuberance,  developed  on  the  head  at  the  juncture  with  the 


454 


455 


456  POULTRY  CULTURE 

upper  mandible.  The  shape  is  also  different  from  that  of  the  Euro- 
pean races.  In  profile  the  body  has  a  more  oblong  appearance  ; 
the  carriage  is  more  erect ;  the  neck  is  long  and  slender,  making, 
in  the  smaller  varieties,  a  more  graceful  type.  In  color,  too,  there 
is  a  characteristic  difference,  the  colored  variety  having  a  distinctly 
brown  shade  not  found  in  domestic  races  of  European  ancestry. 
Notwithstanding  these  differences  the  Asiatic  and  European  races 
interbreed  freely  and  produce  fertile  offspring.  A  possible  link  con- 
necting two  types  is  found  in  the  Russian  geese,  in  which  nobby 
protuberances  develop  on  the  heads  of  old  birds,  and  which  some- 
times show,  in  their  clay  color,  traces  of  the  brown  shade  of  the 
dark  Asiatics. 

The  China  Goose.1  There  are  two  Standard  varieties  of  the 
China  Goose,  the  Brown  and  the  White.  A  general  description 
of  shape  has  been  given  above.  The  size  is  about  the  same  as  that 
of  the  common  goose.  In  color  the  Brown  China  is  a  brownish 
gray,  darkest  on  the  head  and  back  ;  the  White  China  is  pure  white. 
The  African  Goose.  As  now  known,  the  African  Goose  is  in 
appearance  a  large  Brown  China,  with  the  brown  shade  eliminated 
(in  Standard  exhibition  specimens)  from  the  plumage.  Of  the  ori- 
gin of  this  variety  nothing  definite  is  known.  The  confusion  of 
names  and  the  lack  of  definiteness  in  descriptions  of  early  writers 
•make  it  impossible,  in  many  cases,  to  determine  whether  the  geese 
they  describe  as  "Chinese"  and  "African"  are  the  same  as  the 
geese  now  known  by  those  names.  Early  descriptions  of  the  African 
Goose,  however,  attribute  to  it  brown  color  (like  the  Brown  China) 
and  great  size  (unlike  the  Brown  China),  making  it  quite  plain  that 
the  present  distinction  in  color  is  one  of  the  common  tricks  of  breed 
making.  The  type  is  one  not  found  in  Africa,  and  considering 
the  Chinese  custom  of  developing  size  in  practical  poultry,  it  is 
much  more  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  China  Goose  in  Amer- 
ica is  a  refined,  and  the  African  Goose  an  enlarged,  development 
of  an  intermediate  size.  Whether  either  type  is  of  purely  Asiatic 
blood  may  well  be  doubted.  In  the  flocks  of  the  African  Goose 
usually  seen,  indications  of  mixtures  with  Toulouse  or  common 

1  The  China  Geese  are  sometimes  classed  as  ornamental,  but  though  not  pop- 
ular, their  undoubted  adaptability  to  economic  uses  makes  it  proper  to  recognize 
them  in  this  class. 


GEESE  AND  SWANS 


457 


stock  are  often  evident.  The  relation  to  the  Brown  China,  too,  is 
often  manifest.  No  doubt  continuous  and  somewhat  irregular  cross- 
ing has  had  much  to  do  with  these  appearances,  but  it  would  be 
quite  absurd  to  suppose  that  only  recent  crosses  have  influenced 
the  development  of  these  varieties. 

The  American  Wild  Goose.  While  not,  strictly  speaking,  a  do- 
mestic race,  the  Wild  Goose,  also  called  Canadian  Goose,  is  a  factor 
of  some  importance  in  commercial  goose  culture.  Along  the  North 
Atlantic  coast  considerable  numbers  are  bred  in  captivity,  the 
young  being  sold  to  hunters  of  wild  geese  for  decoys.  Where  so 
bred  they  are  largely  used  for  crossing  with  domesticated  races. 
The  progeny  of  the  cross  is  sterile,  showing  that  this  is  a  different 
species.  The  weight  is  about  the  same  as  the  common  goose,  though 
the  wild  bird,  because  of  its  more  compact  form  and  shorter  plum- 
age, appears  smaller.  The  color  of  the  body  is  gray,  the  head  and 
neck  black,  the  cheeks  having  white  marks  ;  some  brown  color 
appears  in  the  flight  feathers  of  the  wings. 


TABLE  XXIV.    AMERICAN   STANDARD  WEIGHTS  OF   GEESE 


Variety 

Adult  Gander 

Young  Gander 

Adult  Goose 

Young  Goose 

Wild 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Pounds 

Pounds 
Q 

China    .    .    .....    . 

12 

IO 

IO 

8 

African      .              . 

2O 

16 

18 

I  A 

Emden       

2O 

18 

18 

16 

Toulouse  

2O 

18 

18 

I  c 

These  are  ordinary,  average  weights.  A  considerable  proportion  of  stock  of 
the  heavier  varieties  is  below  the  Standard  weight  for  exhibition  specimens, 
but  many  specimens  are  above  these  weights.  Emden  and  Toulouse  geese 
5  pounds  above  Standard  weights  are  not  rare  in  America.  In  England 
these  varieties  are  grown  still  larger,  Emdens  weighing  30  pounds  for  males 
and  28  pounds  for  females  ;  Toulouse,  28  pounds  for  males  and  26  for  females. 
As  a  rule,  only  the  Emden  and  Toulouse  varieties  are  approved  by  goose 
growers  wishing  to  breed  a  large  variety  pure.  Both  are  used  extensively  for 
grading  up  common  stock.  As  they  run  in  America,  where  the  Toulouse  is 
far  more  popular,  the  Toulouse  is  larger  than  the  Emden  and  many  of  the  latter 
are  poor  layers.  The  African  is  also  used  to  some  extent  for  grading,  but  the 
difference  in  type  makes  it  less  desirable.  On  the  other  hand,  the  cross  of  the 


458 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Wild  Goose  and  the  African  produces  a  mongrel  of  more  attractive  appearance 
than  the  cross  of  the  Wild  Goose  on  European  varieties.  The  Toulouse  is  a 
nonsitter ;  the  other  varieties  are  all  sitters.  As  layers  the  Chinese  Geese  are 
rated  highest,  producing  usually  from  forty  to  fifty  eggs  a  season.  The  Tou- 
louse come  next,  then  the  Africans,  with  the  Emdens  last. 

Ornamental  geese.  Only  two  varieties  of  ornamental  geese  are 
seen  in  America,  and  those  rarely.  The  Sebastopol  Goose,  also 
called  Danubian,  is  a  white  goose  about  the  size  of  the  common 
goose  (usually  a  little  smaller),  with  red  bill  and  legs  and  long, 
slender,  slightly  curling  feathers  on  the  back  and  wings.  Tne 
Egyptian  Goose  is  a  small  goose  said  to  be  found  throughout  the 
continent  of  Africa,  probably  a  distinct  species.  Though  recog- 
nized and  described  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection,  specimens  are 
seen  here  only  in  collections.  It  is  variegated  in  color,  and  is 
chiefly  interesting  to  the  student  of  poultry  types  from  the  fact 
that,  of  all  the  geese  with  which  poultrymen  come  in  contact,  it  is 
the  only  kind  which  shows  the  variety  and  brilliancy  of  color  found 
in  the  natural  types  of  our  domestic  fowls  and  ducks. 

Swans.  The  White  Swan  is  the  only  familiar  variety  of  its 
species,  the  Black  Swan  being  rarely  seen.  Each  is  presumed  to 
be  free  from  other  color.  The  rarity  of  the  birds  and  their  large 
size  and  ugly  disposition  when  handled  make  it  impracticable  to 
apply  in  their  breeding  the  methods  used  for  common  kinds  of 
poultry.  While  ornamental,  they  are  of  little  interest  to  the  fancier. 


CHAPTER  XXV 

PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 

Kinds  of  reproduction.  In  the  simplest  forms  of  animal  life 
reproduction  is  by  self-division,  the  separating  parts  being  (nor- 
mally) equally  developed.  As  the  scale  of  life  ascends  and  organ- 
isms become  larger  and  more  complex,  division  into  equal  parts 
becomes  detrimental  or  impossible,  and  the  organism  at  maturity 
reproduces  by  a  series  of  divisions,  at  each  of  which  there  is  thrown 
off  from  the  parent  body  a  part  such  as  that  body  itself  was  at  an 
earlier  stage  of  development.  Still  higher  in  the  scale,  with  life 
and  its  functions  growing  more  complex,  reproduction  takes  place 
only  when  the  elementary  bodies  from  two  mature  bodies  unite  at 
(or  very  near)  the  time  of  separation  from  the  parent  organisms. 
With  the  evolution  of  the  sexual  from  the  asexual  method  of  re- 
production we  are  not  here  concerned.  Such  facts  as  the  funda- 
mental similarity  of  the  forms  of  reproduction  and  the  necessity 
of  the  higher  organisms  for  diverse  parentage,  which  gave  rise  to 
sex,  are  elementary  in  the  study  of  the  principles  of  breeding. 

Likeness  in  asexual  reproduction.  In  the  self -division  of 
simple  animal  forms  the  maxim  of  the  breeder  "  Like  produces 
like  "  is,  according  to  our  observation,  exactly  applicable.  The  or- 
ganism resolves  itself  into  like  and  equal  parts.  In  forms  a  little 
higher  up,  the  organism  resolves  itself  into  parts  unequal  in  size 
and  development,  the  larger  and  more  adyanced  part  producing  a 
succession  of  smaller  parts  without  change  in  itself,  then  dying, 
the  others  (such  as  survive)  growing  to  maturity  and  producing 
and  perishing  in  the  same  manner. 

Relations  of  body  and  germ.  The  higher  we  go  in  the  scale 
of  life,  and  the  more  complex  the  structure  of  the  animal  becomes, 
the  greater  the  difference,  both  in  size  and  appearance,  between 
the  fully  developed  organism  and  the  part  which  separates  from 
it  in  reproduction,  until  in  creatures  which  reproduce  sexually  the 
germs  are  (as  compared  with  the  body)  very  minute  and  of  the 

459 


460  POULTRY  CULTURE 

most  simple  elementary  form  and  structure.  The  germs  of  crea- 
tures differing  greatly  in  every  character  by  which  we  distinguish 
them  are  so  nearly  alike  in  size  and  appearance  that,  out  of  associ- 
ation with  or  proximity  to  the  parent  form,  their  identification  is 
difficult  and  ordinarily  impossible.  Virtually,  the  germ  retains  its 
primitive  form  and  structure  up  to  the  point  of  separation  from 
the  body,  no  matter  what  may  be  the  development  of  the  body. 
But  however  little  the  germ,  at  separation,  may  show  the  char- 
acter of  the  body  from  which  it  came,  under  proper  conditions  it 
develops  into  a  body  of  the  same  kind,  —  never  by  any  possibility 
into  a  body  of  another  kind.  Like  still  produces  like,  but  in  the 
higher  organism  the  likeness  of  the  part  called  the  germ  to  the 
part  called  the  body  becomes  apparent  only  with  development. 

In  the  simpler  organic  forms,  where  self -division  results  in  the 
production  of  like  parts,  no  Question  is  raised  as  to  the  possession, 
by  each  of  these  parts  at  the  time  of  separation,  of  every  character- 
istic of  the  other.  In  the  higher  animal  forms,  and  particularly  in 
domestic  animals  and  birds,  differences  between  a  parent  organism 
and  the  germs  it  has  produced,  as  observed  at  advanced  or  mature 
stages  of  the  development  of  these  germs,  cause  questioning  as  to 
how  far  the  germ  partakes  of  the  character  of  the  body  at  the  time 
of  separation  from  it.  That  the  tiny  germ  carries  in  it  power  to 
develop  an  individual  having  the  general  characteristics  of  the 
parent  form  and  race  is  undeniable,  —  the  evidence  is  everywhere. 
How  far  the  germ  contains  power  to  reproduce,  in  the  individual 
developing  from  it,  modifications  peculiar  to  the  parent  form,  is 
the  disputed  question.  Reasoning  from  analogy  with  the  simpler 
animal  forms,  the  presumption  is  that  the  germ  carries  in  it  power 
to  produce  (under  suitable  conditions)  an  organism  identical  with 
the  parent  body  at  the  time  of  separation. 

However  scientists,  in  their  endeavor  to  demonstrate  laws  of  he- 
redity by  exact  comparisons  of  limited  numbers  in  consecutive  gener- 
ations, may  disagree  as  to  the  transmission  of  acquired  characters, 
the  whole  practice  of  live-stock  breeders  is  based  on  the  theory  that 
from  the  germ  may  be  developed  a  creature  in  every  way  like  the 
parent  form  at  the  time  of  self-division,  and  results  of  breeding 
in  general  demonstrate  that  the  theory  is  correct.  To  the  practi- 
cal breeder  the  idea  that  acquired  characters  (more  correctly,  quality 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    461 

or  grade  of  character)  cannot  be  transmitted  is  absurd.  On  the 
other  hand  his  experience  teaches  him  that  they  are  not  regularly 
and  uniformly  transmitted,  even  under  the  most  uniform  and  favor- 
able conditions,  and  that  differences  in  forms  compared  at  maturity 
are  due  in  part  to  environment  and  conditions  affecting  the  creature 
during  its  independent  development,  and  in  part  to  modifying  ten- 
dencies or  to  factors  brought  over  or  inherited  from  the  parent 
organism.  The  nature  of  these  will  appear  as  the  phases  of  inher- 
itance are  presented. 

Beginning  of  variation.  In  the  simpler  forms  of  animal  life, 
variation  through  the  influence  of  environment  is  plainly  a  cause 
of  individual  differences.  Such  differences  are  evidently  acquired 
and  as  evidently  transmitted,  for,  once  separated,  the  parts  may 
become  in  a  measure  unlike  through  difference  of  environment. 
One  may  die  by  accident  or  through  lack  of  nourishment ;  another, 
more  favorably  placed  than  before,  may  grow  larger  than  the  parent 
organism  and  in  self-division  produce  creatures  superior  to  what 
it  was  at  the  beginning  of  its  independent  existence.  Between 
such  extremes  there  is  a  range  of  possibilities  of  development,  and 
always,  as  long  as  the  parts  are  equal  at  division,  we  can  hardly  con- 
ceive of  one  possessing  at  its  origin  a  characteristic  that  the  other 
has  not.  In  the  higher  animal  forms,  with  the  germ  developing 
during  a  long  period  independently  of  the  parent  body,  it  is  obvious 
that,  since  environment  may  influence  growth,  there  is  opportunity 
for  much  greater  modification  of  the  organism  during  the  period 
of  development,  and  that,  the  more  highly  developed  and  specialized 
the  organism,  and  the  greater  its  possibilities  of  somatic  variation, 
the  more  detrimental  to  the  species  it  would  be  to  have  individual 
variations  fully  and  uniformly  transmitted.  Every  slight  variation 
would  start  development  in  a  new  direction  and  there  would  be  no 
stability  in  animal  forms. 

Sex  the  natural  regulator  of  variation.  As  long  as  an  organ- 
ism reproduces  independently,  by  simple  self-division  or  by  divi- 
sion and  combination  of  its  own  elements,  its  characters  will  be 
reproduced  in  its  offspring,  and  its  tendencies  intensified  in  each 
succeeding  generation  developed  under  favorable  conditions. 
While  simplicity  of  structure  prevents  wide  variations,  this  is  no 
detriment  and  may  be  an  advantage  to  the  species.  But  as  the 


462 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


structure  becomes  more  elaborate,  with  specialized  parts,  each  of 
which  has  a  number  of  different  qualities,  the  possibilities  of 
variation  increase,  and  with  the  tendency  to  vary  one  of  its  prin- 
cipal inherent  characters,  variation  and  specialization  unchecked 
might  lead  to  mongrelism  and  to  the  destruction  of  an  established 
balance  of  characters,  as  it  has  in  many  cases  in  domestication. 
Nature  checks  variation  and  extreme  specialization  by  making  the 
creature  no  longer  capable  of  independent  propagation,  —  making 
reproduction  contingent  upon  the  combination,  at  the  same  stage 
of  existence,  of  germs  from  two  different  individuals.  The  orderly 
arrangement  of  natural  processes  requires  that  an  individual  shall 
always  contribute,  in  reproduction,  an  elementary  germ  of  the  same 
character.  Hence  nature  divides  individuals,  of  each  species  re- 
quiring this  regulation,  into  two  kinds,  with  differences  dependent 
upon  or  related  to  the  sexual  functions.  A  right  appreciation  of  this 
use  of  sex  is  of  importance  to  all  breeders  of  live  stock,  but  more  to 
poultry  breeders  than  to  others,  because  in  most  kinds  of  poultry 
secondary  sexual  characters  are  more  marked  and  made  more 
important  in  breeding,  and  because  in  the  practical  work  of  the 
poultry  breeder  the  sexes  are  of  more  equal  value  than  in  horses, 
cattle,  sheep,  and  swine. 

Likeness  in  sexual  reproduction.  Observation  of  numbers  of 
offspring  of  the  same  parents  shows  that  the  parental  characters 
do  not  combine  in  the  same  way  in  all.  When  a  sufficient  number 
of  cases  is  considered,  it  is  apparent  that  any  character  of  either 
parent  may  appear  unchanged,  but  that  in  general  all  characters 
blend,  though  not  always  uniformly.  This  lack  of  uniformity, 
objectionable  to  the  breeder  because  he  is  seeking  to  secure 
uniformity,  often  seems  to  him  irregular  and  eccentric.  On  the 
contrary,  it  is  regular, —  due  to  individual  variation  and  to  the  impos- 
sibility of  offspring  being  exactly  like  unlike  parents.  The  likeness 
which  the  breeder  desires  is  obtained,  in  individuals  of  each  gener- 
ation, only  when  the  parents  are  so  nearly  alike,  both  in  appear- 
ance and  in  breeding,  that  the  range  of  variation  in  inherited 
characters  is  narrow,  and,  consequently,  differences  due  to  in- 
dividual variation  are  slight.  Briefly  stated,  The  general  prob- 
lem of  the  breeder  is  to  find  like  ancestors  for  all  (or  as  many  as 
possible]  of  the  individuals  of  a  race  produced  in  each  generation. 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    463 

This  problem  is  easy  if  his  standard  considers  few  characters, 
becoming  increasingly  difficult  as  the  number  of  characters  con- 
sidered is  increased,  and  the  breeder's  ideals  of  quality  in  stock 
advance.  The  problem  of  the  breeder  who  works  to  a  standard  is 
essentially  the  same,  whether  that  standard  be,  as  yet,  imperfectly 
conceived  in  his  own  mind,  or  elaborated,  agreed  upon,  and  estab- 
lished by  an  organization  of  breeders, —  whether  the  variety  is  as 
yet  unformed  or  has  been  brought  to  close  conformity  with  a  high 
standard  ;  but  in  the  first  case  he  may  sometimes  use  parents 
quite  unlike  (in  external  appearance)  the  offspring  that  he  hopes 
to  secure  by  a  combination  of  their  differing  characters,  and  in  the 
other,  if  he  uses  a  parent  that  is  markedly  unlike  the  desired  type 
in  the  offspring,  it  is  in  the  hope  of  securing  either  the  direct 
inheritance  of  some  quality  in  it,  or  a  blending  of  some  of  its 
characters  with  those  of  the  stock  on  which  it  is  bred.  The  de- 
velopment and  condition  of  such  a  variety  as  the  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  afford  illustrations  of  all  kinds  of  combinations  to  secure, 
in  a  variety  of  poultry,  likeness  to  a  desired  type.  The  early  strains 
were  formed  (i)  by  a  number  of  different  crosses  of  parents  quite 
unlike ;  (2)  by  selection  of  such  of  those  cross-bred  offspring  as 
most  nearly  approached  that  type;  (3)  in  a  particular  strain,  by  the 
late  introduction  of  blood  of  a  race  radically  unlike  l  those  used  in 
any  of  the  original  crosses,  but  very  like  the  (supposed)  original 
type  of  fowl ;  (4)  by  a  general  distribution  and  mingling  of  this 
strain  with  others;  and,  finally,  (5)  by  the  device  of  a  double 
system  of  mating  to  provide  for  each  sex  of  the  Exhibition  type 
just  the  kind  of  parents  required  to  produce  it. 

The  sexes  equal  in  respect  to  the  transmission. of  characters. 
Though  consideration  of  particular  cases  often  indicates  differences 
in  the  influences  of  the  sexes  in  the  transmission  of  characters, 


1  The  Black-Red  Game  has  been  much  used  by  breeders  of  recently  made 
varieties  to  restore  vigor  and  stamina  where  they  have  deteriorated  through 
neglect  of  those  qualities  in  the  keen  pursuit  of  special  features  of  desired 
types.  A  favorite  theory  with  many  of  the  older  breeders  was  that  the  Black- 
Red  Game,  by  reason  of  its  close  relation  to  the  original  type  and  through  cen- 
turies of  careful  breeding  for  shape  and  stamina,  could  give  to  the  newer  races 
stamina  and  stability  of  type  which  would  remain  even  when  the  superficial  Game 
characters  and  the  color  had  been  bred  out.  The  theory  is  not  altogether  fanciful, 
though  it  may  not  be  demonstrable. 


464  POULTRY  CULTURE 

such  differences  are  individual,  irrespective  of  sex.1  This  becomes 
apparent  whenever  a  sufficient  number  of  cases  is  considered. 
How  the  line  is  drawn  between  asexual  and  sexual  reproduction 
is  not  known.  From  the  fact  that  in  asexual  reproduction  the 
germ  carries  the  possibility  of  development  of  every  parental 
character,  the  logical  inference  is  that  a  germ  from  any  individual 
will  always  carry  possibilities  of  development  of  every  character 
of  that  individual.  Wide  observations  of  the  phenomena  of  breed- 
ing as  exhibited  in  any  race  indicate  that  this  inference  is  cor- 
rect. Many  poultry  breeders  will  declare  that  the  female  has  most 
influence  on  shape  and  size,  the  male  on  color  and  superficial  char- 
acters. Observation  supports  the  assertion  that  the  female  influ- 
ences size  (and  shape,  which  is  largely  dependent  on  development) 
more  than  the  male,  but  this  influence  is  exerted  after  transmission 
through  the  special  relation  ^of  the  female  to  the  embryo,  and  the 
opinion  is  based  mostly  on  comparisons  of  the  offspring  of  different 
females  by  the  same  male.  As  between  two  females,  the  one  well 
developed  and  vigorous,  the  other  undersized  and  lacking  vitality, 
the  offspring  by  the  same  sire  will  (conditions  after  the  embryonic 
stage  being  equal)  invariably  show  marked  difference  in  development, 
due  first  to  difference  in  transmission,  but  also  to  difference  in  nour- 
ishment during  the  embryonic  stage.  When  characters  not  so  mate- 
rially affected  by  the  vitality  of  the  dam  are  compared,  none  can  be 
found  on  which  sex  has  any  special  influence  in  transmission. 

Prepotency.  Observation  of  the  common  phenomena  of  breed- 
ing shows  that  individuals  vary  in  capacity  to  transmit  characters. 
Ordinarily,  the  average  of  the  progeny,  even  of  parents  carefully 
selected  for  quality  according  to  the  standard  used,  is  distinctly 
lower  than  the  average  of  the  parents, —  though  in  the  work  of  a 
skillful  breeder  the  average  quality  of  the  progeny  in  each  genera- 
tion tends  steadily  higher  than  the  average  quality  of  the  preceding 
generation  as  a  whole.  But  there  are  frequently  found  individuals 
with  unusual  capacity  for  impressing  upon  their  progeny  high  quality 

1  This  observation,  of  course,  does  not  directly  apply  to  what  is  called  sex- 
limited  inheritance,  where  the  sexes  differ  regularly  as  to  the  form  in  which 
they  inherit  a  particular  character  or  characters.  Yet  in  the  last  analysis  it 
does  apply  to  such  cases,  as  is  seen  when  a  male  inherits  the  male  form  of  a 
character  from  the  maternal  line,  or  the  female  the  female  form  of  a  character 
from  the  male  line  of  ancestry. 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    465 

or  rare  combination  of  quality  in  their  racial,  family,  or  individual 
characters.  This  peculiar  capacity  in  reproduction  is  termed  pre- 
potency and  individuals  possessing  it  are  said  to  be  prepotent. 

As  commonly  used,  the  term  "prepotency •"  relates  only  to  capacity 
to  transmit  desired  characters.  It  is  not  a  character  or  quality  in  the 
ordinary  sense  of  those  terms.  It  is  more  appropriately  described  as 
a  condition  of  a  particular  individual  in  which  it  reproduces,  with 
extraordinary  accuracy,  its  racial  type  or  its  particular  type,  accord- 
ing as  the  condition  affects  or  is  affected  by  the  common  laws  of 
inheritance.  Prepotency  is  not  a  definite  condition  or  quality,  but 
is  always  relative  to  average  or  ordinary  potency.  An  individual 
which  in  the  early  stages  of  the  development  of  a  stock  appears 
prepotent  might  at  a  later  stage  rank  low  in  breeding  potency.  It 
has  no  marks  distinguishing  it  in  the  individual ;  consequently  its 
occurrence  seems  erratic.  Because  of  the  absence  of  distinguishing 
marks  in  the  individual,  the  bird  which  shows  externally  the  highest 
excellence  in  desired  characters  is  always  preferred  for  breeding,  and 
so  undoubtedly  many  prepotent  individuals  are  never  given  an  oppor- 
tunity to  show  that  quality.1  Because  only  desirable  transmissions 

1  One  of  the  most  remarkable  cases  of  prepotency  was  related  to  me  by  Mr. 
H.  C.  Rollins,  of  Woodville,  Massachusetts,  for  many  years  one  of  the  foremost 
breeders  of  Light  Brahmas.  In  making  up  his  Brahmas  one  winter,  he  had  one 
cockerel  reserved  for  breeding  on  his  general  appearance,  but  discarded  him  as 
.not  of  sufficient  merit  to  be  used  in  a  mating  from  which  eggs  for  hatching  were 
to  be  sold  at  high  prices.  When  females  had  been  selected  to  mate  with  the  other 
males,  there  were  some  eight  or  ten  left  over,  —  birds  of  general  high  quality  but 
not  considered  quite  good  enough  for  the  regular  matings.  Naturally  this  surplus 
stock  was  all  put  in  one  house.  It  was  not  considered  a  pen  mated  for  breeding. 
Not  having  eggs  enough  from  the  regular  matings  to  give  all  he  wanted  for  his  own 
hatching  after  supplying  his  customers,  Mr.  Rollins  used  eggs  from  this  pen  and 
found  them  very  fertile.  Then,  running  short  of  eggs  for  his  orders,  he  used  eggs 
from  the  same  pen  to  fill  some  orders  for  old  customers  in  cases  where  he  knew 
them  and  thought  they  would  rather  take  the  chances  of  these  eggs  than  have 
their  order  returned,  and  where,  if  results  were  not  satisfactory,  he  could  adjust 
the  matter  easily.  As  his  own  chickens  developed,  he  found  the  chicks  from  the 
mating  of  discarded  birds  a  remarkably  uniform  and  superior  lot,  the  average  being 
above  the  best  of  other  matings.  Reports  from  customers  who  had  eggs  from  this 
mating  were  to  the  same  effect.  This  case,  it  should  be  noted,  was  in  the  experi- 
ence of  a  man  who  has  no  superior  as  a  breeder,  and  in  stock  bred  in  line  by  him 
for  over  a  quarter  of  a  century.  That  the  prepotent  quality  was  in  the  male  bird  was 
evident,  for  the  females,  while  of  the  same  stock,  were  not  all  bred  alike,  nor  as 
like  in  appearance  as  in  regular  matings.  They  were  simply  the  remnants  of  the 
several  lines,  of  females  used  in  the  matings  of  an  extensive  breeder. 


466  POULTRY  CULTURE 

are  considered  in  estimating  prepotency,  and  because  only  a  small 
proportion  of  poultry  breeders  carefully  pedigree  their  stock  on 
the  female  side  (so  that  the  quality  of  prepotency  in  the  females 
used  is  not  always  discovered),  the  manifestations  of  breeding  capac- 
ity to  which  that  term  is  applied  are  undoubtedly  but  a  very  small 
part  of  the  possible  manifestations  of  unusual  capacity  for  the 
transmission  of  characters. 

Prepotency  and  selection.  Ordinary  cumulative  results  of  selec- 
tion and  prepotency  should  not  be  confounded.  Ordinarily  prog- 
ress in  breeding  to  a  type  is  slow, —  inch  by  inch,  as  it  were.  Let 
a  prepotent  individual  appear,  and  its  power  be  discovered,  and  in 
a  single  generation  a  breeder  may  make  more  progress  through 
this  one  individual  than  in  a  long  term  of  years  preceding.  Within 
another  generation  he  may  have  raised  the  average  quality  of  his 
stock  to  very  near  the  average  of  the  progeny  of  the  prepotent 
individual.  Within  a  very  few  years  the  distribution  of  this  stock 
may  have  made  marked  improvement  in  the  general  stock  of  the 
variety.  This  is  most  noticeable  in  the  early  stages  of  the  develop- 
ment of  varieties,  when  quality  of  characters  is  low  or  mediocre  as 
measured  by  the  approved  standard,  and  individual  differences  are 
most  marked.1  A  variety  as  represented  at  leading  shows  (where 
the  best  specimens  always  come)  may  show  no  special  merit  or  ad- 
vance for  years.  Then  an  exhibitor  will  appear  with  a  remarkable 
string  of  birds.  Immediately  his  stock  is  in  great  demand,  and  the- 
next  year's  exhibits  will  show  in  the  stocks  of  many  breeders  sim- 
ilar improvement  due*  to  infusions  of  the  blood  of  the  improved 
stock,  or  to  direct  purchases  of  it.  Progress  by  ordinary  selection 
is  always  slow  —  hardly  perceptible  in  the  averages  of  consecutive 
generations.  Progress  by  the  use  of  prepotent  individuals  is 
immediately  conspicuous. 

Transmission  of  prepotency.  To  what  extent  prepotency  is  trans- 
mitted it  is  difficult  to  determine.  Direct  investigations  of  this  point 

1  The  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  again  affords  an  illustration,  and  in  a  leading 
stock  of  that  variety.  About  twenty  years  ago,  H.  B.  May,  after  a  visit  to  the  farm 
of  A.  C.  Hawkins,  said  in  conversation  with  another  breeder:  "  Hawkins's  stock 
has  been  going  back  ;  it  is  n't  as  good  as  it  was  a  few  years  ago  ;  but  he  's  got  one 
cock  there  that  can  put  him  up  in  front  again.  I  don't  know  whether  he  knows 
it  or  not,  but  I  think  he  does."  That  cock  was  Royal  Blue.  He  was  both  a  phe- 
nomenal bird  and  a  phenomenal  sire  and  gave  his  name  to  the  Hawkins  stock. 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    467 

have  as  yet  afforded  no  positive  conclusions.  The  consensus  of 
opinion  of  breeders,  based  on  general  observation,  is  that  prepotency 
is  transmitted,  but  it  requires  very  careful  analysis  of  the  results 
of  breeding  the  progeny  of  prepotent  individuals  to  show  how  far 
such  results  are  unusual  in  the  sense  that  the  results  of  breeding 
from  the  prepotent  individual  were,  and  how  far  they  should  be 
considered  normal  after  the  prepotent  individual  had  raised  the 
average  of  its  family  or  race. 

Present  and  latent  characters.  "  Dominance  "  and  "  recessive- 
ness  "  are  terms  used  to  describe  the  behavior  of  extreme,  or  plainly 
distinct,  grades  of  characters  in  sexual  reproduction.  While  each  of 
the  two  germs  which  in  this  form  of  reproduction  unite  to  form  a 
new  organism  brings  to  the  new  organism  possibilities  of  develop- 
ing any  character  of  the  body  which  produced  it,  it  is  manifestly 
impossible  that  the  new  organism  should  develop  with  characters 
in  the  aggregate  equal  to  the  sum  of  the  characters  of  both  parents. 
It  must  be,  as  has  been  stated,  a  composite,  in  which  the  characters 
of  the  parents  blend,  and  usually  blend  very  irregularly,  presenting 
all  grades  of  blending  between  different  forms  of  a  character  (as  of 
color  or  comb),  or  a  variety  of  different  combinations  of  characters. 

Alternate  inheritance,  reversion,  and  atavism.  If  organisms 
reproducing  sexually  could  transmit  to  their  offspring  only  such 
developments  or  modifications  of  characters  as  could  be  produced 
direct  from  characters  as  developed  in  them,  a  character  which  had 
once  disappeared  could  not  reappear,  except  as  it  might  come  from 
some  new  combination.  But  it  is  found  in  practice  that  characters 
disappearing  in  one  generation  often  reappear  in  the  next  or,  less 
numerously,  in  later  generations.  The  most  familiar  illustration  of 
such  reappearance  in  characters  of  poultry  is  the  perpetually  recur- 
ring single  comb  in  rose-combed  varieties.  Similar  "  faults  "  occur 
frequently  in  other  characters  in  all  varieties  of  poultry,  cropping 
out  sometimes  most  unexpectedly  in  stock  in  which  they  have  been 
scrupulously  avoided  by  the  breeder  for  many  generations  when 
making  up  his  matings.  The  biologist,  observing  the  phenomena 
of  reproduction  in  a  short  series  of  generations,  and  breeding  to 
secure  full  manifestation  of  the  laws  of  inheritance,  deals  impartially 
with  characters.  If  a  character  can  come  back,  he  gives  it  every 
opportunity  to  do  so.  He  considers  the  character  recessive, — tending 


468  POULTRY  CULTURE 

to  recede  in  the  race  if  not  interfered  with ;  that  is  the  natural 
status  of  such  characters.  The  breeder,  who  works  as  far  as  pos- 
sible with  predominant  characters,  considers  a  character  which  has 
once  disappeared  and  may  reappear,  latent.  As  a  rule,  his  only 
interest  in  it  is  to  prevent,  as  far  as  possible,  its  reappearance.  The 
reappearance  of  latent  characters  after  a  lapse  of  one  generation 
is  called  alternate  inheritance.  The  reappearance  of  characters 
after  a  lapse  of  two  or  more  generations,  but  still  traceable  to 
comparatively  near  ancestors,  is  called  reversion.  The  appearance 
of  a  character  not  belonging  to  the  race  as  it  exists,  or  to  its 
known  ancestors,  but  presumed  to  be  derived  from  a  very  remote 
ancestor,  is  called  atavism. 

From  the  occurrence  of  the  phenomena  of  alternate  inheritance, 
reversion,  and  atavism  we  conclude  that  the  germ  contains  possibil- 
ities of  development  of  any  character  of  any  ancestor,  however  re- 
mote ;  by  the  regularly  diminishing  frequency  of  the  occurrence  of 
a  recessive  character,  as  the  number  of  generations  of  ancestors 
free  from  it  increases,  we  conclude  that,  once  eliminated  from  a 
single  individual,  a  family,  strain,  or  variety,  practically  free  from 
that  character,  may  be  produced  in  three  or  four  generations. 

Laws  of  heredity.  A  general  law  of  inheritance  may  be  based 
on  the  rate  of  increase  of  a  dominant  character  in  a  race,  or  on 
the  decreasing  reappearance  of  a  recessive  character.  The  law  as 
worked  out  by  Galton,  from  the  investigation  of  inheritance  in 
human  beings,  is  generally  accepted  by  poultry  breeders  as  a 
correct  expression  of  the  general  behavior  of  characters  of  poultry 
in  reproduction,  and  as  showing  approximately  the  percentage  in 
each  generation  of  birds  which  show  a  selected  character  com- 
mon to  all  observed  ancestors,  or  a  rejected  character  absent  in 
all  observed  ancestors. 

Gallon's  law.  An  individual  inherits  from  each  of  its  two 
parents  of  the  first  generation,  \  of  its  total  characters  ;  from  each 
of  its  four  parents  of  the  second  generation,  ^  ;  from  each  of  its 
eight  parents  of  the  third  generation,  J?  ;  from  each  of  its  sixteen 
parents  of  the  fourth  generation,  ^  ;  from  each  of  its  thirty-two 
parents  of  the  fifth  generation,  j^,  and  so  on. 

Applied  to  a  single  character  appearing  in  an  individual  but  not 
present  in  other  members  of  the  race,  this  means  that  one  fourth 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    469 

of  the  direct  progeny  of  that  individual  would  be  likely  to  inherit 
that  character.  If,  then,  two  of  the  offspring  possessing  the  char- 
acter were  bred  together,  the  chances  of  its  appearance  in  their 
offspring  would  be  one  fourth  from  each  parent  and  one  sixteenth 
from  the  grandparent.  Nine  in  every  sixteen  of  the  second  gen- 
eration would  inherit  the  character.  As  by  constant  selection  the 
number  of  ancestors  which  had  the  character  is  increased,  and  the 
proportion  of  ancestors  which  did  not  have.it  is  steadily  reduced 
and  its  influence  rapidly  diminished,  only  a  few  generations  are 
required  to  reach  the  stage  of  fixity  of  the  character  in  the  race 
where  the  influence  of  ancestors  unlike  in  respect  to  it  becomes 
a  negligible  factor. 

Galton's  law  is  not  a  law  or  rule  of  practice  in  poultry  breeding. 
The  attitude  of  the  practical  poultry  breeder  toward  it  should  not 
be  misunderstood ;  it  cannot  be  said  that  he  uses  it.  As  a  formal 
statement  based  on  scientific  investigation  it  has  been  especially 
serviceable  to  those  giving  instruction  in  the  principles  of  breed-" 
ing,  to  prove  the  general  rule  of  selection,  to  demonstrate  the 
stability  and  practical  purity  of  new  breeds  and  varieties,  and  to 
show  the  need  of  close  breeding  to  fix  and  hold  desired  combi- 
nations of  characters. 

Mendel's  law.  Of  more  importance  than  Galton's  statement 
were  the  discoveries  of  Mendel  in  regard  to  the  behavior  of  unlike 
characters  in  transmission.  When  first  published  by  Mendel,  these 
attracted  no  attention.  Mendel's  account  of  his  work  was  redis- 
covered about  1 900,  and  has  since  profoundly  influenced  the  course 
of  investigation  of  the  subject  of  heredity.  'Unfortunately  many 
scientists  who  took  up  this  work  with  enthusiasm  failed  to  note 
some  serious  faults  in  Mendel's  treatment  of  his  results  and  in  his 
enunciation  of  principles  based  upon  them,  and  consequently,  though 
a  considerable  amount  of  this  work  has  been  done  with  poultry,  it 
has  not  yet  yielded  results  of  such  value  to  poultry  breeders  as  at 
first  seemed  likely  to  follow  scientific  investigation  in  this  field. 

Mendel,  experimenting  mostly  with  the  sweet  pea,  observed l 
(i)  that  in  the  offspring  of  certain  crosses  a  certain  character  of  a 
parent  form  might  disappear ;  (2)  that  when  these  offspring  were 

1  For  a  fuller  statement  of  Mendel's  law  see  Davenport's  "  Principles  of 
Breeding." 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

bred  together  and  also  with  the  parent  forms  the  behavior  of  this 
latent  character  and  of  the  corresponding  dominant  character  seemed 
to  follow  a  definite  law,  there  being  approximately  fixed  ratios  of 
frequency  of  occurrence  of  such  contrasted  characters  in  each  pos- 
sible combination  of  parent  forms ;  (3)  that  certain  individuals  in 
which  a  latent  or  recessive  character  reappeared  in  this  generation 
were  pure  as  to  that  character,  while  a  like  number  presenting  the 
dominant  character  were  pure  as  to  that  character,  and  a  number 
equal  to  these  two  classes  combined  had  the  dominant  character 
but  would  not  certainly  produce  offspring  having  it ;  (4)  that  in 
breeding  from  this  last  class  there  would  be  regularly  produced  the 
same  proportions  of  pure  dominants,  pure  recessives,  and  individ- 
uals in  which  the  visible  character  did  not  correspond  with  the 
germ  character. 

It  is  plain  that,  if  this  was  a^  correct  interpretation  of  his  results, 
Mendel  had  discovered  and  formulated  a  law  of  great  importance 
to  practical  breeders.  But  Mendel's  own  interpretation  of  his  re- 
sults was  faulty  in  these  respects  :  (i)  attributes  which  were  prop- 
erly grades  of  characters  he  regarded  as  "opposite  "  and  "mutu- 
ally exclusive  "  characters,  and  (2)  he  did  not  discriminate  carefully 
in  the  examination  and  description  of  his  results.  The  modern  dis- 
ciples of  Mendel  have  generally  persisted  in  these  errors,  and  are 
only  now  beginning  to  avoid  them  and  to  present  their  results  so  that 
practical  breeders  will  give  them  serious  attention.  Furthermore, 
in  nearly  all  Mendelian  discussion  it  has  been  assumed  that  Men- 
del's law  related  especially  to  cross-breeding,  and  that  its  principal 
practical  application  would  be  to  the  making  of  new  breeds  and 
varieties,  while  poultry  breeders  as  a  class  are  most  interested  in 
perfecting  established  races,  and  discourage  the  multiplication  of 
varieties.  To  be  of  direct  use  to  the  mass  of  poultry  breeders  the 
facts  of  Mendelism  must  be  demonstrated  with  pure-bred  poultry 
and  the  laws  stated  for  direct  application  in  the  breeding  of  pure 
races.  In  all  the  confusion  on  this  subject  it  seems  clear  that  the 
behavior  of  characters  in  transmission  is  less  eccentric  than  has 
been  supposed,  and  that  it  may  be  possible  to  devise  systems  of 
breeding  and  of  record  keeping  which  will  enable  breeders  to 
identify  those  individuals  which  breed  true  as  to  desired  char- 
acters, and  to  eliminate  more  certainly  and  rapidly  from  their  flocks 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    471 

those  specimens  in  whose  progeny  undesirable  latent  characters 
would  appear.  Incidentally,  the  methods  of  studying  breeding 
problems  which  Mendelism  has  introduced  are  likely  to  lead  to 
important  discoveries  in  relation  to  other  phenomena  of  breeding. 
Correlation  of  characters.  If  we  have,  to  begin  with,  such  an 
individual  as  we  desire,  and  the  work  is  not  obstructed  by  failure 
of  the  individual  of  the  desired  type  to  breed,  or  by  adverse  pre- 
potency of  individuals  mated  with  it,  it  is  easy  to  fix  or  to  eliminate 
any  single  character,  and  this  can  be  done  in  a  very  few  genera- 
tions ;  but  in  breeding  to  fix,  maintain,  or  produce  a  type,  it  is 
necessary  to  consider  many  characters  at  the  same  time.  If  each 
character,  in  its  various  expressions,  were  absolutely  independent 
of  every  other  character,  the  making  and  maintaining  of  types  ap- 
proximating fixed  standards  would  be  a  hopeless  task.  The  char- 
acters of  an  individual,  being  parts  of  an  organism,  are  often 
necessarily  similar  in  certain  manifestations,  either  throughout  or  in 
closely  related  groups.  The  welfare  of  the  individual  depends  to 
a  great  extent  upon  the  adaptation  of  its  parts  to  each  other  and 
to  its  conditions  and  mode  of  life.  So  there  are  established,  in  any 
race  or  family  bred  on  any  principle  of  selection,  certain  apparent 
correlations  of  parts  occurring  so  regularly  that,  when  considered 
only  where  they  occur,  they  appear  to  indicate  an  essential  unity, 
making  the  group  of  characters  act  as  one.  Thus,  the  body,  legs, 
neck,  and  head  of  a  bird  have  as  a  rule  a  similarity  (differing 
outlines  considered)  of  proportions  ;  a  bird  with  long  body  is  likely 
to  have  a  long  neck,  head,  and  legs  ;  a  bird  with  very  short,  strong 
bill  and  broad  skull  is  likely  to  be  short  and  heavily  built  throughout. 
That  these  correlations  are  not  essential  is  seen  when  we  find  in 
such  a  variety  as  the  Exhibition  Game  fowl  an  increase  in  length  of 
neck  and  legs  quite  out  of  proportion  to  the  increase  in  length  of 
body,  and  in  creeper  varieties  the  size  (including  length)  of  body 
maintained,  while  the  length  of  neck  is  slightly,  and  the  length  of 
legs  greatly,  reduced.  Again  there  is  a  natural,  general  tendency  to 
correlation  in  structural  character  of  bones,  muscles,  and  skin.  If 
size  and  muscle  are  developed,  making  a  largex  heavy  body,  the 
tendency  is  to  coarseness  throughout,  —  coarse  bone,  coarse-fibered 
flesh,  and  coarse,  thick  skin.  But  on  examination  of  a  number  of 
birds  of  this  general  type  it  will  be  found  that  there  is  not  close 


472 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


correlation,  while  when  fowls  of  different  types  and  breeding  but  of 
like  weights  are  compared,  great  differences  are  found  in  weight 
of  bone  and  in  texture  of  flesh  and  skin.  In  short,  while  the  tend- 
ency to  correlation  which  constitutes  physical  symmetry  is  marked, 
the  fact  that  it  is  variable  and  easily  broken  up  indicates  that  such 
characters  are  not  necessarily  correlated. 

Correlation  of  external  characters  with  constitution  and  function. 
A  distinction  must  be  made  between  the  normal  state  of  a  character 
and  transient,  abnormal  expressions  of  it.  To  one  observant  of  the 
attitudes  and  actions  of  animals  and  birds  under  a  variety  of  circum- 
stances, the  general  attitude  and  carriage  of  body  and  limbs,  the 
movements,  the  expression  of  the  eye,  etc.  indicate  immediately 
whether  the  creature  is  in  normal  health  or  not,  and  in  a  healthy 
creature  afford  means  of  estimating  its  vitality.  There  is  plainly  a 
correlation  in  such  things,  but" not  of  the  kind  under  consideration. 
It  is  merely  the  expression  of  the  general  condition  of  the  creature. 
By  correlation  of  external  and  internal  characters  is  meant  such  par- 
ticular relation  between  a  certain  external,  plainly  visible  character 
and  a  certain  functional  character,  or  a  certain  quality  which  cannot 
be  determined  by  ordinary  inspection  of  the  creature  in  life,  that  the 
external  character  serves  as" an  index  of  the  value  of  the  other. 

The  most  familiar  cases  of  supposed  correlation  of  external  and 
internal  characters  in  poultry  relate  to  the  laying  capacity  in  fowls. 
The  size  of  the  comb  has  long  been  popularly  considered  a  reliable 
index  of  relative  laying  capacity.  To  a  less  extent  popularly,  but- 
more  widely  among  poultrymen,  a  certain  shape  of  body  is  regarded 
as  the  egg  type,  invariably  found  in  great  layers.  Like  all  fal- 
lacies, these  have  a  slight  foundation  in  fact.  That  the  condition 
of  the  comb  of  a  hen  varies  according  to  the  activity  or  inactivity 
of  the  reproductive  organs  is  so  evident  that  no  one  who  has  the 
care  of  fowls  can  fail  to  see  it.  Normally  the  comb  of  a  hen,  is 
larger  when  she  is  laying  than  when  she  is  not,  and  brighter  in 
color ; 1  the  comb  of  a  pullet  does  not  develop  until  she  is  about 
to  lay ;  the  growth  of  the  comb  of  a  cockerel  corresponds  with  the 

1  The  fully  developed,  bright-red  comb  is  not  an  infallible  sign  that  the  hen 
is  laying.  Many  hens  with  diseased  ovaries,  and  some  that  never  lay,  have 
well-developed  combs.  In  a  healthy  hen,  however,  there  is  regularly  a  difference 
in  the  appearance  of  the  comb  when  she  is  laying  and  when  she  is  not. 


PHENOMENA  AND  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING    473 

development  of  the  reproductive  organs.  When  a  hen  is  not  lay- 
ing, the  comb  becomes  smaller  and  loses  its  bright-red  color.  If  a 
sufficient  number  of  cases  is  considered,  a  comparison  of  egg  pro- 
duction of  hens  with  large  and  hens  with  small  combs  will  always 
show  that  the  size  of  the  comb  is  not  correlated  with  laying  capac- 
ity. Neither  as  between  varieties  or  breeds,  nor  between  individuals 
in  a  variety,  does  the  size  of  the  comb  indicate  laying  capacity. 
Many  uncommonly  good  producers  have  very  small  combs. 

The  shape  of  the  comb  and  the  size  and  shape  of  the  wattles 
sometimes  appear  to  be  correlated  with  reproductive  capacity  in 
both  cocks  and  hens.  Many  instances  are  noted  of  fowls  with 
poorly  developed  combs  and  wattles  that  are  lacking  in  vitality. 
Males  of  this  kind  are  often  marked  as  poor  breeders.  In  these 
cases  the  failure  to  develop  is  not  peculiar  to  the  comb  and  wattles. 
The  body  is  not  well  developed,  and  in  the  males  the  lack  of 
development  of  the  male  plumage  is  noticeable. 

The  alleged  egg  type  in  hens  is  a  long-bodied  bird,  appearing 
wedge-shaped,  with  the  broad  part  of  the  wedge  at  her  rear 
when  she  is  viewed  either  in  profile  or  from  above.  The  type  de- 
scription is  borrowed  from  the  favorite  description  of  the  dairy 
type  of  cow.  It  applies  with  varying  accuracy  to  most  hens  when 
laying  heavily,  but  the  records  of  experiment  stations  which  have 
investigated  this  point  confirm  the  view  of  careful  observers  among 
poultrymen  that  there  is  no  correlation  between  shape  of  body  and 
laying  capacity. 

Quite  a  long  list  might  be  made  of  supposed  correlations  of 
external  features  with  internal  characters  or  qualities.  A  few  will 
show  the  general  character  of  all.  White  birds  of  all  kinds  are 
popularly  considered  weaker  in  constitution  than  others,  but  not 
the  slightest  foundation  for  the  idea  can  be  found  in  a  general 
comparison.  A  red  eye  is  considered  by  many  as  an  indication 
of  reproductive  vigor,  but,  except  as  heightened  color  of  the  eye 
gives  a  brighter,  bolder,  expression  and  reflects  good  physical  con- 
dition, it  would  be  hard  to  show  foundation  for  the  idea.  People 
who  prefer  a  special  color  of  skin  often  aver  that  there  is  a  corre- 
lation between  color  of  skin  and  quality  and  flavor  of  flesh.  Some 
justification  for  this  view  may  be  found  in  the  fact  that  the  meat 
types  of  western  Europe,  with  white  or  gray  skin,  are  of  better 


474 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


average  table  quality  than  the  fowls  of  America,  where  yellow- 
skinned  poultry  is  generally  preferred.  It  is  not  the  color  of  the 
skin,  but  selection  for  quality,  that  makes  the  difference.  The 
European  breeders  give  careful  attention  to  meat  quality ;  in 
America  very  little  attention  has  been  given  to  the  development 
of  fine  quality  in  table  fowls. 

Tradition,  prejudice,  and  superficial  observation  are  the  princi- 
pal sources  of  ideas  of  correlation  of  external  and  internal  charac- 
ters in  poultry.  In  a  general  way  the  development  and  condition 
of  external  characters  indicate  the  development  and  condition  of 
all  characters.  Correlation  of  development  is  general  rather  than 
special.  The  substantial  characters  of  a  species  are  necessarily 
closely  correlated.  In  a  state  of  nature  the  superficial  characters 
are  also  closely  correlated,  but  in  domestication  natural  groups 
may  be  broken  up  and  new  combinations  formed,  and  after  a  few 
generations  the  combination  as  a  whole  tends  to  reproduce  with 
only  slight  modifications. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

APPLICATION  OF  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  POULTRY  BREEDING 

The  work  of  the  breeder  consists  in  intelligent  direction  of  the 
natural  laws  of  reproduction  for  certain  definite  purposes.  His 
object  is  not  (as  is  so  often  erroneously  supposed)  to  secure  the 
perpetuation  of  natural  types,  or  of  the  types  of  domestic  live  stock 
which  would  develop  under  any  given  conditions  if  he  did  not 
interfere.  If  such  were  his  objects,  all  that  would  be  necessary 
would  be  to  destroy  individuals  presenting  marked  variations  from 
the  common  type  and  to  allow  others  to  mate  according  to  chance 
and  inclination.  The  breeder's  part  in  the  development  of  domes- 
tic races  is  to  bring  order  out  of  the  chaos  of  variation  called 
mongrelism.  From  a  practically  unlimited  stock  of  types  he  selects 
the  few  found  most  serviceable,  or  which  seem  to  him  most  beau- 
tiful, fixes  these  types  and  tries  to  persuade  others  to  use  and 
preserve  them.  What  nature  would  do  in  any  particular  case 
interests  him  either  not  at  all  or  only  as  it  gives  him  an  insight 
into  the  properties  of  the  living  matter  with  which  he  works. 
While  the  standards  to  which  he  breeds  are  practically  fixed,  in 
successful  individual  work  in  breeding  the  results  are  always  pro- 
gressive. If  the  first  independent  efforts  of  a  breeder  show  im- 
provement in  good  stock,  that  is  usually  due  to  chance  and  is 
likely  to  be  lost  in  the  next  trial.  It  is  when  the  poultry  breeder 
finds,  year  after  year,  better  quality  in  his  good  birds  and  a  larger 
proportion  of  birds  of  high  quality,  that  he  knows  that  he  is 
applying  principles  correctly. 

While  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  the  independent  work  of  a 
novice  in  breeding  stock  of  any  type  will  give  at  first  a  high  grade 
of  results,  there  is  no  need  of  the  rapid  regression  from  type,  and 
deterioration  of  quality,  usually  shown  in  the  work  of  the  novice 
beginning  with  good  poultry.  With  very  rare  exceptions  novices 
in  poultry  breeding  begin  their  work  with  two  wrong  ideas  firmly 
fixed  in  their  minds.  They  suppose  that  absolute  purity  of  blood 

475 


476  POULTRY  CULTURE 

gives  uniformity  in  results,  and  that  the  great  evil  they  have  to 
guard  against  in  breeding  is  loss  of  vitality  and  of  "  practical  quali- 
ties "  through  breeding  from  birds  near  akin. 

The  history  of  the  development  of  races  shows  very  plainly  that 
the  development  and  preservation  of  artificial  types  depends  upon 
systematic,  continuous  selection.  The  fact  that  self-division  is  the 
first  form  of  reproduction,  and  that  self-fertilization  is  the  law  in 
both  the  vegetable  and  the  animal  kingdom  until  a  high  stage  of 
development  through  variation  is  reached  and  sex  becomes  neces- 
sary as  a  check  on  variation,  shows  that  inbreeding  is  not  in  itself 
detrimental.  The  breeder  who  accepts  these  two  facts  at  the  be- 
ginning of  his  work  is  in  a  position  with  reference  to  it  which  no 
one  who  fails  to  apprehend  them  ever  reaches.  It  would  be  hard 
to  find  a  successful  poultry  breeder  who  did  not  date  the  beginning 
of  his  success  from  the  time  when  he  came  to  appreciate  the  fact 
that  any  breed  or  variety  in  his  hands  became  what  he  made  it,  and 
that  outbreeding  tended  always  to  disintegration  of  well-established 
types.  The  effective  use  of  principles  of  breeding  as  deduced  from 
phenomena  of  reproduction  depends  on  the  application  of  principles 
without  prejudice. 

Adaptability  of  poultry  breeding.  In  poultry  breeding,  and 
particularly  in  the  breeding  of  fowls,  we  find  the  one  line  of  animal 
breeding  open  to  every  one  who  has  the  use  of  a  little  land.  The 
ordinary  farmer  cannot  be  an  independent  breeder  of  horses  or 
cattle ;  the  number  of  animals'  he  can  produce  and  mature  on  his 
farm  is  not  large  enough  to  give  him  either  the  necessary  experi- 
ence or  a  proper  selection  of  breeding  stock.  With  sheep  and  hogs 
the  ordinary  farmer  may,  if  he  is  so  inclined,  do  something  in  the 
way  of  special  breeding.  With  poultry  the  resident  on  a  village 
lot  may  do  in  a  few  years  more  actual  work  in  breeding  than  most 
growers  of  other  domestic  live  stock  can  do  in  a  lifetime.  The  rela- 
tively small  individual  value  of  ordinarily  good  breeders,  and  the 
rapid  rate  of  increase  in  poultry,  make  it  possible  for  a  breeder  to 
secure  a  few  good  individuals  by  a  very  small  investment,  and  to 
build  up  a  large  stock  in  a  short  time. 

Length  of  life  and  breeding  value.  The  short  life  of  most 
kinds  of  poultry  is  a  disadvantage  to  the  breeder,  in  that  the  full 
measure  of  the  breeding  value  of  an  individual  may  not  be  found 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     477 

until  its  usefulness  as  a  breeder  is  nearly  over.  The  value  of  a 
stallion  or  a  mare,  or  of  a  bull  or  a  cow,  as  a  breeder  may  be  demon- 
strated long  before  the  animal  has  reached  its  prime.  Then  many 
years  of  life  remain  in  which  the  breeder  may  use  a  few  selected 
individuals  year  after  year.  But  except  in  the  larger  and  less  pro- 
ductive kinds  of  poultry,  the  breeder  must  make  a  large  proportion 
of  new  matings  every  year.  The  numbers  produced  by  even  large 
stock  breeders  are  less  than  those  produced  by  the  average  small 
poultry  breeder.  The  poultry  breeder  usually  has  an  abundance  of 
material  for  selection,  and  if  he  attends  to  it  year  by  year,  may 
make  much  more  rapid  progress  in  any  desired  direction  than  the 
breeder  of  cattle  and  horses.  On  the  other  hand,  inattention  to 
selection  of  breeders  for  a  year  is  almost  certain  to  put  him  back 
two  or  three  years,  while  two  or  three  years'  relaxation  of  vigilance 
in  efforts  to  maintain  or  develop  a  type  will  usually  make  it  neces- 
sary for  him  to  begin  all  over  again.  A  breeder  of  horses  or  cattle 
might  neglect  special  attention  to  breeding  for  several  years,  and 
yet,  if  he  retained  a  part  of  his  stock,  take  the  work  up  again  about 
where  he  left  it,  and  with  the  same  individuals.  In  a  like  period 
of  time  a  neglected  stock  of  fowls  or  ducks  would  include  a  very 
small  proportion  of  individuals  of  known  breeding.  The  breeder 
of  poultry  has  to  give  practically  constant  attention  to  the  selection 
of  breeders. 

Relative  value  of  male  and  female.  If  in  polygamous  crea- 
tures the  females  produce  normally  but  one  or  two  young  at  a  birth 
and  breed  but  once  a  year,  the  apparent  breeding  value  of  a  male, 
bred  to  any  given  number  of  females,  is  equal  to  that  of  all  the 
females,  for  he  has  a 'one-half  influence  on  the  progeny  of  all,  while 
the  hereditary  influence  of  each  female  is  limited  to  her  own  prog- 
eny. Then  whatever  of  peculiar  merit  an  individual  in  any  gener- 
ation may  take  from  its  dam  is  limited  to  that  individual.  Its  sire 
and  dam  may  reproduce  its  like,  one  or  a  few  each  year.  When 
it  arrives  at  maturity,  it  may  reproduce  its  special  merit  in  its  off- 
spring, —  if  a  male  it  may  reproduce  its  type  in  a  considerable 
number ;  if  a  female,  in  a  very  limited  number  each  year.  Under 
such  conditions  a  male  of  great  individual  merit  or  prepotency  is 
much  more  valuable  than  a  female.  As  the  number  of  young  pro- 
duced by  the  female  increases,  her  practical  value  in  reproduction 


478  POULTRY  CULTURE 

of  type  as  compared  with  that  of  the  male  increases ;  for  while  the 
male  may  still  influence  a  very  much  larger  number  of  offspring, 
the  female  may  produce  enough  offspring  in  a  season  to  enable  a 
breeder  to  produce  in  the  next  season  hundreds  or  even  thousands 
of  young  from  matings  of  her  offspring.  As  between  a  male  and 
female  of  equal  breeding  value,  polygamous  mating  constitutes  a 
handicap  of  one  generation  on  the  female.  This,  where  a  genera- 
tion matures  in  less  than  a  year,  is  a  very  slight  difference.  An 
experienced  and  skillful  poultry  breeder  places  as  high  a  value 
on  the  female  in  his  breeding  operations  as  on  the  male,  though 
commercially  the  male  is  more  valuable  because  a  purchaser  may 
realize  more  quickly  on  his  investment. 

Selection.  In  nature  the  established  type  of  a  species  or  a  variety 
is  the  type  that  is  best  adapted  to  its  environment.  Such  types 
develop  as  a  result  of  natural  selection,  defined  by  Darwin  as  "  the 
survival  of  the  fittest."  In  improved  domestic  races  types  are  arbi- 
trarily determined  by  man  in  accordance  with  his  needs  or  his 
tastes,  and  are  secured  and  maintained  by  allowing  only  individuals 
of  the  desired  types  to  propagate  their  kind.  Such  types  are  called 
artificial  types  (breeds)  and  the  system  of  selection  by  which  they 
are  made  and  preserved  is  called  artificial  selection. 

Superficially,  artificial  and  natural  selection  often  seem  to  pro- 
ceed on  radically  different  principles,  and  so  are  by  many  regarded 
as  essentially  antagonistic.  The  impression  is  very  general  that 
artificial  selection  is  unnatural,  —  at  variance  with  nature.  This  is 
true  only  when  by  artificial  selection  the  development  or  suppres- 
sion of  a  character  is  carried  to  the  point  where  the  result  becomes 
detrimental  to  the  race.  In  domestication  natural  selection  becomes 
in  a  measure  inoperative,  and  the  natural  type  varies  and  multi- 
plies indefinitely.  Artificial,  or  intelligent,  selection  then  becomes 
necessary  for  the  isolation  and  development  of  a  limited  number 
of  the  types  arising.  In  the  wild  state  conditions  make  it  impos- 
sible for  many  special  types  of  a  species  to  develop  in  the  same 
territory.  In  domestication,  man  may  develop,  by  the  control  and 
separation  of  individuals,  as  many  types  as  he  wishes.  As  long  as 
selection  does  not  unduly  disturb  the  natural  equilibrium  of  char- 
acters, artificial  selection  is  not  unnatural ;  and  in  so  far  as,  with- 
out injury  to  others,  it  develops  special  characters  beyond  what 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     479 

is  possible  under  natural  conditions,  it  is  better  than  natural 
selection.  The  difference  between  the  common  type  of  a  wild 
race  and  the  finest  type  of  the  same  race  in  domestication  is  a 
measure  of  the  difference,  in  its  value  to  man,  of  natural  and 
artificial  selection. 

Poultry  standards.  The  continuance  and  distribution  of  a 
specific  type  or  variety  in  domestication  depend  upon  the  agree- 
ment of  breeders  on  a  standard  for  that  type.  In  the  development 
of  a  breed  or  variety  in  any  locality  an  unwritten  standard  is  gradu- 
ally evolved,  and  the  breeders  are  loosely  governed  by  that  standard. 
When  a  variety  is  widely  distributed  and  competitive  exhibitions 
bring  together  stock  from  many  localities,  a  written  standard  be- 
comes necessary.  Unwritten  standards,  as  a  rule,  relate  only  to  the 
most  conspicuous  features  of  a  type,  and  allow  great  variation  in 
details.  Written  standards  undertake  to  establish  size  and  weight 
and  to  describe  every  visible  character.  They  are  usually  mere 
outlines,  and  often  seem  vague  to  those  not  familiar  with  the  varie- 
ties described  and  with  the  popular  types.  Even  when  descriptions 
are  supplemented  by  pictorial  illustrations,  a  written  standard  is 
quite  inadequate  as  a  description  of  a  variety.  In  studying  a  stand- 
ard the  novice  must  use  as  illustrations  live  birds  of  known  values 
as  commonly  measured  by  that  standard.  The  standard  of  a  breed 
or  variety  describes  the  assumed  perfect  type  of  every  character  of 
that  variety.  Such  a  standard  is  ideal,  in  that  the  model  form  of 
each  and  every  character  is  not  often  found  in  any  one  bird.1  The 
ordinary  view  of  standards  makes  such  a  standard  (in  theory)  the 
ideal  toward  which  all  breeders  are  striving.  Actually,  considering 
the  relations  of  a  standard  to  its  variety  at  different  periods  of  the 
history  of  the  variety,  and  the  inevitable  differences  in  interpretation 
of  its  provisions,  a  written  standard  only  indicates  general  direc- 
tions and  bounds,  and  the  exact  type  in  style  at  any  time  can  be 
learned  only  by  observation  of  the  type  that  wins  most  prizes  at 
leading  shows. 

The  term  "  standard  "  is  technically  (but  not  discriminatingly) 
used  in  this  country  with  specific  reference  to  varieties  described  in 

1  The  technical  fiction  is  that  the  perfect  bird  cannot  be  produced.  .While  the 
proportion  to  the  whole  number  is  small,  many  birds  are  produced  which  only 
hypercritical  judgment  can  find  fault  with. 


480  POULTRY  CULTURE 

the  "American  Standard  of  Perfection"1  published  by  the  Ameri- 
can Poultry  Association.  Stock  bred  for  any  definite  purpose  or  to 
fix  or  maintain  any  character  or  combination  of  characters  is,  prop- 
erly speaking,  standard  bred.  The  Standard  of  Perfection  is  a  hand- 
book for  judges  and  exhibitors  rather  than  a  complete  guide  for 
breeders ;  for,  although  the  breeder's  object  is  to  produce  birds  of 
the  descriptions  the  Standard  calls  for,  in  all  varieties  many  birds 
of  great  value  as  breeders  are  found  which  the  Standard  disqualifies 
for  exhibition,  while  in  every  variety  in. which  double  matings  are 
used  the  exhibition  type  is  regularly  produced  from  matings  of  Stand- 
ard birds  of  one  sex  with  non-Standard  birds  of  the  opposite  sex. 

Relative  value  of  characters  in  selection.  When  fowls  are 
bred  for  eggs,  without  special  attention  to  increase  of  egg  produc- 
tion, there  are  only  two  essential  points  to  be  considered,  —  vitality 
(vigor,  good  constitution,  and  development)  and  size  ;  and  in  respect 
to  the  latter  point,  all  that  is  necessary  is  that  the  fowls  shall  be 
large  enough  to  lay  eggs  of  the  average  size  that  the  market  de- 
mands. All  other  points  may  be  disregarded.  In  breeding  for  the 
table,  shape  also  must  be  considered,  making  vitality,  size,  and  shape 
the  essential  points.  In  breeding  for  exhibition,  carriage,  color, 
comb,  crest,  and  other  superficial  features  become  of  importance. 
In  applying  standards  in  accordance  with  the  original  and  rational 
intent  of  the  written  standard,  superficial  characters  are  not  given 
valuations  which  make  it  possible  for  a  bird  inferior  in  substantial 
characters  to  win  by  superiority  in  superficial  characters,  and  espe- 
cially not  by  exaggeration  of  valuation  of  a  single  character.  The 
common  effect  of  the  use  of  written,  accurate  standards  is  to  bring 
a  variety  quickly  to  a  high  state  of  development  in  superficial  char- 
acters. After  this  stage  has  been  reached  and  the  birds  (with  the 
usual  slight  individual  variations)  are  actually  of  very  uniform 
quality  (on  a  fair  interpretation  of  the  terms  describing  the  various 

1  In  a  general  way  the  practice  of  the  American  Poultry  Association  has  been 
to  give  recognition  to  breeds  or  varieties  at  an  advanced  stage  of  develop- 
ment whenever  a  considerable  number  of  persons  showed  interest  in  the  matter, 
but  it  has  frequently  happened  that  breeds  that  were  quite  popular  were  refused 
recognition,  while  others  in  which  few  were  interested  have  been  admitted. 
Recognition  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection  usually  implies  that  considerable 
progress  has  been  made  in  fixing  the  type.  The  fact  that  a  breed  or  variety  is 
not  in  the  Standard  tells  nothing  as  to  its  quality. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING      481 

sections),  the  tendency  is  to  make  the  decision  of  relative  merits 
turn  on  a  few  special  features,  to  overvalue  such  features,  and  so, 
by  corresponding  undervaluation  of  other  features,  to  develop  a 
few  favored  characters  at  the  expense  of  the  rest.  Many  illustra- 
tions of  this  kind  might  be  given.  There  is  hardly  a  variety  in 
the  Standard  that  has  not  at  some  time  suffered  through  such 
partiality  for  some  character.  The  most  marked  cases  are  those  in 
which  the  variety  has  lost  popularity  through  the  development  of 
a  feature  which  finally  became  detrimental ;  but  the  evil  is  by  no 
means  confined  to  such.  The  craze  for  dead-white  plumage  for  a 
time  made  the  white  varieties  conspicuous  for  lack  of  shape  and 
vitality.  The  craze  for  barring  "to  the  skin"  leads  breeders  of 
Barred  Plymouth  Rocks  to  some  neglect  of  shape  and  size.  In 
Leghorns  and  Polish  the  head  points  have  been  rated  as  high 
as  thirty  per  cent  of  the  value  of  the  specimen,  with  the  result,  in 
case  of  the  Leghorn,  of  so  reducing  size  and  neglecting  shape  of 
body  that  the  breed  seemed  at  one  time  in  danger  of  losing  stand- 
ing with  the  public.  In  breeding  birds  for  exhibition  the  breeder 
is  forced  to  follow  prevailing  fads.  Doing  so  does  not  necessarily 
compel  neglect  of  other  characters,  but  as  the  fad  develops  it  be- 
comes more  and  more  difficult  to  find  and  produce  specimens 
good  in  the  favored  section  and  also  in  other  sections. 

Systems  of  selection.  In  selecting  his  breeding  stock  a  poultry 
breeder  uses  two  principles,  or  systems,  of  selection,  applying  some- 
times one,  sometimes  the  other ;  thus  the  common  method  of 
selection  is  by  irregular  alternation  of  these  systems.  Selection  by 
a  complex  standard  may  be  (i)  progressive  (or  particular),  consid- 
ering certain  characters  or  groups  of  characters  always  in  the  same 
order,  and  rejecting  from  subsequent  consideration  all  individuals 
failing  to  meet  requirements  at  any  stage  of  selection,  and  (2)  simul- 
taneous (or  collective),  in  which  an  effort  is  made  to  consider  all 
the  more  important  characters  collectively,  balancing  faults  in  some 
against  merits  in  others.  It  is  not  practicable  to  apply  the  progressive 
principle  to  a  great  many  characters,  one  by  one.  By  a  division  of 
characters  into  natural  groups,  with  separate  consideration  of  each 
group  and  of  the  principal  characters,  and  collective  consideration 
of  all  but  the  more  important  characters  in  a  group,  a  simple  and 
effective  working  system  of  selection  is  developed. 


482  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Division  of  characters  for  this  purpose  gives  three  classes,  which 
may  be  designated  as  (i)  essential,  (2)  substantial,  and  (3)  superficial. 

Essential  characters.  Whatever  the  purpose  for  which  poultry 
are  bred,  they  should  have  (a)  good  constitution,  (b)  size  appropriate 
to  minimum  requirements,  and  (c)  individual  symmetry.  Lacking 
constitutional  vigor,  a  bird  is  not  likely  to  produce  offspring  equal  to 
itself  in  other  respects.  The  difference  may  not  be  perceptible  in 
comparing  consecutive  generations,  but  a  comparison  of  stock  bred 
for  several  generations  with  care  to  preserve  vitality,  and  stock  in 
which  this  point  has  been  neglected  for  a  similar  period,  rarely  fails 
to  show  marked  deterioration  in  the  latter.  Constitution  not  only 
affects  the  quality  of  other  characters  but  the  numbers  produced, 
the  losses  of  stock,  and  so  (indirectly)  the  methods  of  practice.  In 
size  the  birds  selected  as  breeders  must  always  be  large  enough  to 
produce  offspring  that  will  meet  the  ordinary  requirements  of  the 
purpose  for  which  the  stock  is  bred.  Stock  bred  for  egg  production 
must  be  large  enough  to  lay  eggs  marketable  at  prices  for  average 
receipts ;  stock  bred  for  market  must  be  large  enough  to  produce 
poultry  that  will  meet  at  least  the  minimum  ordinary  demand.  So 
with  stock  bred  to  sell  for  breeding  or  laying  purposes,  —  if  the 
stock  is  vigorous  and  has  the  size  required  for  the  ordinary  produc- 
tion of  eggs  and  market  poultry,  it  is  salable,  though  deficient  in 
many  other  respects  ;  but  if  it  lacks  constitution  and  ordinary  size, 
it  cannot,  as  a  rule,  be  profitably  grown  for  any  purpose.  Individual 
symmetry  means  a  symmetrical  development  of  the  individual  with- 
out regard  to  any  particular  standard  ;  there  may  be  symmetry  of 
parts  without  correspondence  with  any  special  established  type. 
Individual  symmetry  implies  absence  of  deformity. 

Substantial  characters.  Size  as  related  to  special  uses  or  stand- 
ards, and  distinctive  shape  and  color,  are  substantial  characters.  If 
a  particular  size  of  market  poultry  is  to  be  produced,  the  birds  used 
for  breeders  must  be  of  appropriate  size.  In  breeding  birds,  of  any 
established  race,  to  be  sold  for  exhibition  or  breeding  purposes,  the 
breeders  selected  must  closely  approximate  the  standards  of  weight 
for  their  breed  or  variety.  They  should  also  have  the  distinctive 
shape  and  symmetry  of  the  breed  or  variety,  both  as  to  body  and  as 
to  the  general  size  and  shape  of  other  parts  in  which  characters  are 
distinctive.  Color,  too,  is  a  substantial  character  in  so  far  as  it  may 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     483 

have  an  influence  on  profits  with  poultry  of  no  particular  color  type, 
or  may  qualify  a  specimen  as  of  some  particular  color  type.  In 
breeding  for  market  the  breeder,  as  a  rule,  avoids  black  and  dark- 
colored  birds,  especially  if  they  are  to  be  dressed  and  sold  before 
maturity.  In  breeding  to  color  standards  (even  without  close  atten- 
tion to  the  finer  points  of  color)  a  line  must  be  drawn  between  color 
faults  which  may  be  tolerated  and  those  which  ought  to  condemn 
a  bird  for  breeding  purposes. 

Superficial  characters.  The  fine  points  of  color  and  of  shape, 
particularly  of  shape  as  not  affecting  any  useful  quality,  are  su- 
perficial characters.  It  is  the  superficial  points  which  make  the 
differences  between  those  individual  specimens  of  a  race  that  are 
worth  consideration  for  exhibition  or  breeding  purposes,  —  which 
give  to  the  specimen  finish  and  proportionately  increasing  money 
value,  provided  these  superficial  characters  are  found  with  the  de- 
sired essential  and  substantial  characters.  Remarkable  finish  in 
color  or  in  some  other  conspicuous  feature  is  often  found  on  birds 
of  poor  shape,  or  distinctly  inferior  in  size,  or  lacking  in  constitu- 
tion. Such  birds  are'  not  usually  salable  at  high  prices,  but  the 
breeder  is  strongly  tempted  to  use  them,  in  the  hope  of  getting  a 
proportion  of  offspring  with  their  excellence  and  without  their  faults. 
An  experienced  breeder  who  knows  his  stock  thoroughly,  who  re- 
lies on  other  matings  for  most  of  his  stock,  and  who  uses  such  birds 
only  in  special  matings  may  sometimes  succeed  in  doing  this.  A 
novice  rarely  gets  the  desired  results,  and  if  (as  is  too  often  the 
case)  the  use  of  such  a  bird  for  breeding  affects  a  large  part  of  the 
produce  of  a  season,  he  may  lose  more  than  he  could  possibly  gain 
if  the  bird  bred  up  to  his  expectations  ;  for  a  bird  of  this  kind 
rarely  impresses  its  good  quality  on  any  considerable  proportion  of 
its  offspring. 

Progressive  selection,  with  the  elimination,  at  each  step,  of  all 
individuals  which  fail  in  the  requirements  under  consideration,  pre- 
vents the  development  of  stocks  strong  in  some  fancy  points  but 
lacking  in  essential  and  substantial  characters.  The  more  rigid  the 
selection,  the  smaller  becomes  the  number  of  birds  that  will  pass  it. 
As  a  matter  of  business  policy  the  breeder  must  so  regulate  his 
selection  of  available  stock  that  he  can  make  the  most  profitable 
use  of  it  as  a  whole,  but  to  establish  himself  firmly  as  a  breeder 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

he  must  make  the  best  possible  use  of  the  relatively  small  pro- 
portion of  each  year's  produce  in  which  he  finds  combined  a  high 
degree  of  excellence  in  many  characters. 

Collective  selection  and  compensation  in  breeding.  Progressive 
selection  can  apply  in  practice  to  only  a  few  of  the  more  important 
characters.  It  is  in  effect  selection  for  the  elimination  of  faults 
which  the  breeder  regards  as  intolerable.  When  birds  with  such 
faults  have  been  eliminated,  what  remain  will  always  show  consider- 
able variation,  and  this  will  be  most  marked  in  superficial  char- 
acters. Continued  careful  breeding  reduces  differences,  but  since  at 
the  same  time  it  develops  the  breeder's  critical  faculty  and  his 
ability  to  distinguish  slight  differences,  the  proportion  of  what  he 
considers  good  breeders  in  his  stock  may  not  be  materially  changed. 
There  is  usually  a  tendency,  partly  in  the  stock  and  partly  in  the 
breeder's  selection,  to  develop  a  stock  in  the  direction  of  its 
strongest  points.  The  most  effective  checks  on  this  are  the  written 
standard,  competition,  and  the  difficulty  of  selling  specimens  which 
are  decidedly  weak  in  any  superficial  character. 

Having  eliminated  the  most  unlike  individuals  by  progressive 
selection,  the  breeder  proceeds  to  make  appropriate  matings  of 
those  he  has  reserved  by  collective  consideration  not  simply  of  the 
points  of  the  individual  but  of  the  points  of  a  pair,  male  and  female. 
His  object  is  to  secure  in  the  sexes,  as  far  as  possible,  likeness 
to  the  type  to  be  produced  (sexual  differences  of  color,  etc.  duly 
considered),  and  when  the  bird  of  one  sex  varies  from  the  typical  in 
any  character,  to  secure  in  the  other  sex  the  opposite  variation  in 
that  character,  nearly  all  variations  in  well-bred  birds  being  slight 
when  compared  with  variations  in  specimens  from  parents  markedly 
unlike.  This  balancing  of  opposite  tendencies  in  variation  is  of 
little  use,  as  a  rule,  when  the  characters  considered  represent  wide 
variations,  for  the  result  of  the  union  of  such  characters  is  likely  to 
give  many  intermediate  grades  of  blending  of  characters  and  only 
a  very  few  of  any  desired  grade.  The  mating  of  individuals  differ- 
ing widely  in  any  character  is  good  practice  only  when  the  desired 
character  cannot  be  secured  by  breeding  together  like  individuals. 
The  object  of  the  compensation  method  in  mating  is  not  to  enable 
the  breeder  to  use  for  breeding  purposes  as  large  a  proportion  of 
his  stock  as  possible,  but  to  enable  him  to  equalize  the  tendencies 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING      485 

to  variation  in  the  individuals  nearest  the  type.  A  skilled  breeder 
never  uses,  in  his  regular  matings  of  an  established  variety,  birds 
varying  conspicuously  from  the  type  which  produces  the  standard 
type.  Experience  shows  that,  when  the  object  is  to  produce  uni- 
formity of  type  and  high  average  merit,  the  most  reliable  breeders 
are  those  individuals  with  the  fewest  faults.  The  "  good  all-round 
bird  "  is  almost  invariably  more  valuable  as  a  breeder  than  the 
bird  conspicuous  for  special  excellence  of  one  character  or  a  few 
characters. 

Inbreeding  and  line  breeding.  Inbreeding  refers  to  matings  of 
individuals  that  are  near  akin.  Line  breeding  is  applied  to  various 
plans  designed  to  conserve  blood  and  race  character  without  in- 
breeding. Theoretically,  plans  of  breeding  may  be,  and  have  been, 
worked  out  which  would  give  the  breeder,  for  use  at  frequent  inter- 
vals, individuals  bred  in  the  same  way  from  the  same  origin,  —  the 
same  blood  separated  by  several  generations.  Possibly  the  specifi- 
cations could  be  carried  out  in  practice,  but  the  work  is  too  com- 
plicated and  the  results  are  too  uncertain,  and  experience  in  close 
breeding  soon  shows  the  breeder  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  resort 
to  such  methods  to  avoid  inbreeding. 

The  most  common  form  of  line  breeding  is  to  maintain  a  male 
line  intact,  though  occasional  or  even  regular  changes  are  made  in 
the  female  line.  Such  line  breeding  gives  better  results  than  when 
breeding  lines  are  crossed  and  recrossed  irregularly.  If  the  head 
of  the  line  was  an  exceptional  bird,  and  his  male  descendants  used 
for  breeding  in  each  generation  resemble  him  very  closely,  the 
type  cannot  fail  to  be  strongly  impressed  on  the  stock,  though 
females  of  somewhat  different  breeding  are  occasionally  used.  In 
most  cases,  when  results  of  line  breeding  are  conspicuously  and 
regularly  good,  the  breeder  practices  close  breeding  to  a  much 
greater  extent  than  he  thinks  it  wise  to  admit  to  a  public  with  a 
prejudice  against  it. 

Close  breeding.  The  term  "  close  breeding  "  describes  the  prac- 
tice of  the  best  poultry  breeders  more  comprehensively  than  the 
more  familiar  terms  "line  breeding"  and  "inbreeding."  Close 
breeding  is  necessary  to  secure  such  likeness  in  parents  that 
similar  uniformity  may  be  produced  in  their  offspring.  Since  an 
individual  inherits,  on  the  average,  only  one  half  of  its  characters 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

from  its  immediate  parents,  6.25  per  cent  from  each  of  four  grand- 
parents, 1.50  per  cent  from  each  of  eight  great-grandparents,  and 
.39  per  cent  from  each  of  sixteen  great-great-grandparents,  it  is 
plain  that  if  a  breeder  undertakes  (as  most  breeders  do  at  the  out- 
set) to  avoid  consanguineous  matings,  he  will  always  have  in  the 
ancestry  of  each  generation  of  stock  so  many  chances  for  reversion 
and  recombinations  of  latent  characters  that  his  stock  will  never 
reach  a  high  grade  of  excellence  in  many  qualities. 

In  selecting  like  parents  for  any  generation  the  breeder  usually 
finds  that  the  birds  most  like  in  appearance  (and  generally  in  per- 
formance as  well)  are  of  near  kin,  —  that  is,  they  are  like  in  ances- 
try as  well  as  in  appearance.  The  advantage  of  mating  like  birds 
of  like  ancestry  is  so  plain,  and  has  been  demonstrated  so  often  in 
practice,  that  it  is  universally  recognized.  But  there  is  a  popular 
belief  that  close  breeding  (in-and-in-breeding),  while  of  advantage 
to  the  fancier,  is  almost  immediately  destructive  of  vitality  and  of 
practical  qualities,  and  quickly  leads  to  sterility.  This  fallacy  is 
less  prevalent  than  it  has  been,  and  would  soon  disappear  from 
among  poultrymen  if  breeders  did  not,  as  a  matter  of  policy,  say 
as  little  as  possible  about  this  part  of  their  breeding  practice.1 

The  rule  of  good  practice.  Mate  the  best  (for  the  object  in  view) 
individuals  available,  disregarding  relationship,  is  the  general 
practice  of  skillful  breeders.  It  makes  close  breeding  the  usual 
practice,  and  at  the  same  time  leads  to  the  introduction  of  new 
blood  in  small  flocks  every  few  generations,  and  in  large  stocks  at 
less  frequent  intervals.  As  long  as  a  breeder's  matings  within  the 
blood  lines  of  his  own  stock  are  giving  him  such  breeding  birds  as 
he  wants,  there  is  no  object  in  his  going  outside  for  new  blood, 
but  when  he  finds  another  breeder  producing  birds  better  than  his 

1  The  poultry  breeder's  ordinary  and  low-priced  stock  is  bought  mostly  by 
novices  who  insist  on  having  stock  not  akin.  A  large  breeder  making  many  mat- 
ings can  furnish  birds  mated  for  breeding  that  are  not  near  kin.  The  purchaser 
would  usually  get  good  results  from  a  mating  of  this  kind.  But  in  a  great  many 
cases,  so  fearful  is  he  of  the  dangers  of  inbreeding,  and  so  distrustful  of  the  breeder, 
that  he  buys  from  two  different  breeders  at  the  same  time  and  changes  the  males, 
or  if  he  has  some  stock  of  his  own,  mates  some  of  his  females  to  the  male  pur- 
chased and  one  of  his  males  to  the  females.  An  expert  breeder  who  knew  all  the 
stock  might  do  this  with  a  specific  object  and  get  the  results  sought,  but  one  who 
has  no  reason  for  a  mating  except  to  avoid  inbreeding  seldom  gets  good  results 
from  such  changes. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     487 

in  any  respect,  unless  he  can  make  the  same  improvement  in  his 
own  stock,  he  must  have  some  of  that  breeder's  stock.  Usually  he 
buys  stock  as  the  easiest  and  surest  way  to  get  what  he  wants.  A 
breeder  who  is  working  on  a  large  scale,  making  ten,  fifteen,  twenty, 
or  more  matings  of  a  single  variety  every  season,  can,  with  a  little 
care,  avoid  mating  birds  of  near  kin,  yet  keep  within  the  same 
general  blood  lines.  Such  breeders,  as  a  rule,  consider  the  point 
of  relationship  only  as  it  may  affect  the  behavior  of  characters  in 
transmission.  Without  exception  these  breeders  are  ready  buyers 
of  birds  that  they  think  may  prove  useful  in  their  breeding.  The 
small  breeder,  unless  he  has  stock  of  high  quality,  and  breeds  very 
closely,  is  forced  to  go  outside  often,  not  for  new  blood  but  for 
better  quality. 

The  danger  of  introducing  new  blood.  In  any  well-bred  stock 
the  danger  of  deterioration  through  the  introduction  of  new  blood 
is  very  much  more  real  than  any  danger  of  deterioration  through 
lack  of  new  blood  in  stock  bred  with  due  attention  to  essential  and 
substantial  characters.  While  the  point  is  not  one  easily  demon- 
strated, there  is  reason  to  suppose  that  a  mingling  of  blood  lines 
long  separated  tends  to  bring  out  latent  ancestral  characters 
(more  especially,  the  most  troublesome  faults  of  a  variety).  Hence, 
before  making  extensive  use  of  a  bird  of  different  stock  or  of  un- 
known breeding,  an  experienced  breeder  tries  it  in  special  matings, 
to  find  out  how  it  will  "  nick  "  with  his  stock.  A  breeder  may  try 
a  bird  in  this  way  a  number  of  times  with  different  mates  without 
getting  the  results  he  wants.  Small  breeders,  even  after  a  good 
deal  of  experience,  are  too  prone  to  take  chances  on  a  new  bird 
that  has  taken  their  fancy  in  their  general  matings,  often  with 
the  result  that  faults  requiring  years  of  careful  breeding  to  elimi- 
nate crop  out  all  through  the  progeny.  The  experienced  breeder 
never  relies  on  a  new  bird  until  he  has  tested  it,  and  never  lets 
a  bird  of  proved  breeding  value  go  unless  he  has  a  better  one  for 
its  place. 

Age  and  breeding  quality.  In  those  kinds  of  poultry  which  get 
their  full  growth  within  a  year,  it  is  commonly  observed  that  the 
birds,  if  matured  by  the  beginning  of  the  breeding  season,  are  more 
reliable  breeders  the  first  season  than  afterwards,  producing  more 
young,  though  the  quality  may  be  somewhat  inferior  to  what  the 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

same  birds  produce  in  their  second  and  third  breeding  seasons. .  In 
the  larger  kinds,  as  geese  and  turkeys,  the  yearling  males  in  par- 
ticular lack  development  and  the  two-  and  three-year-old  males  are 
usually  in  every  way  much  better  breeders.  With  regard  to  fowls 
and  ducks  —  especially  the  former  —  many  instances  of  great 
breeding  vigor  after  the  first  year  show  that  the  common  failure 
is  due  to  conditions  and  management.  Males  are  overworked  dur- 
ing the  breeding  season  and  not  given  proper  care  after  it.  While 
old  cocks  are  usually  much  less  fertile  in  winter  than  cockerels, 
if  in  equally  good  condition  they  are  as  serviceable  when  spring 
approaches  and  will  get  larger  and  more  uniform  chickens.  In 
general  this  is  true  also  as  to  pullets  and  hens.  It  is  largely  a 
question  of  condition.  The  older  the  bird  grows,  the  more  diffi- 
cult it  is  to  keep  it  in  good  breeding  condition.  Few  fowls  and 
ducks  are  as  good  breeders- the  third  year  as  the  second,  fewer 
still  are  good  after  the  third  year ;  yet  occasionally  four-  and  five- 
year-old  birds  of  both  sexes  will  breed  as  well  and  the  hens  lay 
as  well  as  young  stock,  and  there  are  authentic  instances  of  fowls 
breeding  well  at  seven  and  eight  years  of  age. 

Ratio  of  females  to  males.  In  ordinary  breeding,  with  quantity 
the  first  consideration,  it  is  usual  to  make  the  mating  ratio  as  wide 
as  possible,  mating  with  each  male  the  largest  number  of  females 
that  can  be  kept  with  him  and  a  satisfactory  percentage  of  fertile 
eggs  secured.  This  number  varies  greatly  for  individuals  of  the 
same  variety,  and  also  in  averages  for  males  of  different  classes  of 
fowls  and  of  different  kinds  of  poultry.  In  fowls  it  varies  notably, 
also,  with  conditions  of  mating.  When  one  male  is  penned  for  the 
season  with  the  same  lot  of  females,  the  usual  practice  is  to  mate 
with  a  male  of  the  small  breeds,  from  ten  to  fifteen  hens  ;  with  a 
male  of  the  medium-sized  breeds,  from  eight  to  twelve  hens  ;  with  a 
male  of  the  largest  breeds,  from  six  to  ten  hens.  These  are  about 
the  numbers  used  by  fanciers  and  breeders  who  select  and  breed 
closely  for  general  matings.  In  special  matings  the  breeder  mates 
with  each  male  such  females  as  closely  match,  in  appearance  and 
breeding,  the  one  selected  as  the  best  mate  for  that  male.  In  mating 
as  carefully  as  this  a  breeder  rarely  finds  more  than  three  or  four 
females  for  a  pen,  and  frequently  finds  only  one.  To  get  full  serv- 
ice from  the  male  in  such  cases,  he  may  either  alternate  him  in 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     489 

two  small  matings  (the  second  of  which  is  made  up  of  females 
judged  less  desirable  as  mates  for  him  but  likely  to  produce  some 
good  birds)  or  mate  him  with  females  of  several  slightly  different 
types  and  keep  the  eggs  separate  by  trap-nesting  the  hens.  When 
it  is  inconvenient  to  keep  hens  in  as  small  flocks  as  ten  or  fifteen, 
many  poultry  keepers  keep  from  twenty-five  to  thirty-five  hens  in  a 
flock  and  use  two  males,  alternating  them  at  regular  intervals. 

When  hens  in  large  flocks  are  used  to  produce  eggs  for  hatch- 
ing, the  proportion  of  males  used  is  much  smaller  than  for  separate 
matings.  With  medium-sized  fowls  six  males  to  one  hundred 
females  is  generally  considered  sufficient.  Good  results  have  been 
reported  from  flocks  of  Asiatics  with  the  same  proportion  of 
males.  With  large  flocks  of  Leghorns  the  same  proportion  is  used 
by  many  breeders,  but  others  use  a  smaller  proportion  of  males, 
some  as  low  as  three  to  one  hundred  hens.1 

In  ducks  the  usual  mating  ratio  is  one  male  to  five  females  until 
warm  weather  (May  or  June) ;  after  that,  one  male  to  eight  or  ten 
females.  As  the  males  are  not  quarrelsome,  and  interfere  with  each 
other  very  little,  breeding  flocks  may  be  of  any  desired  number. 
Average  flocks  contain  from  thirty  to  forty  breeders.  In  turkeys  one 
male  is  mated  with  any  number  of  females  up  to  fifteen  or  twenty, 
the  usual  number  being  ten  or  twelve.  All  other  kinds  of  poultry 
either  pair  or  mate  in  small  families. 

Period  of  fertility.  Fertile  eggs  are  often  obtained,  on  the  sec- 
ond day  after  the  introduction  of  a  male,  from  hens  previously 
kept  in  celibacy,  but  usually  fertility  from  a  new  mating  is  low  for 
a  week  or  two,  especially  in  cold  weather.  Experiments  have  shown 
that  hens  may  continue  to  lay  fertile  eggs  for  nearly  three  weeks 
after  separation  from  the  male,  and  that  the  fertility  is  likely  to  be 
as  good  for  a  week  or  ten  days  after  the  removal  of  a  male  as  it 
was  while  he  was  present.  In  turkeys  the  influence  of  an  impreg- 
nation is  said  to  continue  for  a  very  much  longer  period,  but  this 
view  seems  to  rest  on  a  small  number  of  instances  not  very  well 
authenticated.  Accurate  observation  is  difficult,  and  the  roving 

1 1  cannot  say  positively  that  fertility  runs  better  in  the  large  flocks  with  the 
wider  mating  ratio,  but  reports  from  breeders  indicate  to  me  that  it  does.    The  fact 
of  the  very  regular  difference  in  mating  ratio  for  separate  matings  and  miscella-  . 
neous  matings  indicates  more  efficient  service  of  the  males  under  such  conditions. 


490  POULTRY  CULTURE 

habit  of  the  turkey  makes  it  quite  possible  for  females  and  males 
from  different  flocks  to  mate  without  the  knowledge  of  the  keeper. 
There  is  no  authentic  instance  of  the  influence  of  impregnation  con- 
tinuing as  long  as  three  weeks  in  fowls.  When  birds  of  different 
varieties  that  have  been  running  together  are  separated  and  mated 
each  with  its  own  kind,  no  effects  of  previous  matings  are  likely  to 
appear  after  a  week  or  ten  days.1  The  usual  rule  is  not  to  use  the 
eggs  for  hatching  until  two  weeks  after  separation. 

Regulation  of  sex.  It  would  be  a  decided  advantage  to  many 
poultry  keepers  to  be  able  to  control  sex,  but  there  is  no  known 
method  of  either  controlling  or  influencing  the  proportions  of  the 
sexes.  Usually  they  are  produced  in  nearly  equal  numbers,  even 
in  small  broods.  Occasionally  one  sex  will  greatly  predominate  in 
a  brood,  in  a  small  stock,  or  in  the  offspring  of  a  particular  mating. 
Current  reports  sometimes  indicate  a  general  preponderance  of 
one  sex  in  a  particular  season,  in  which  case  every  one  with  a  theory 
on  the  control  of  sex  can  easily  find  instances  which  seem  to  con- 
firm it.  When  the  preponderance  of  one  sex  is  quite  general,  it 
suggests  that  some  general  condition  may  influence  sex.  If  so,  any 
general  control  of  sex  by  the  breeder  is  plainly  impossible.  On  such 
scant  and  crude  observations  as  have  been  made  on  this  point,  the 
only  instances  of  regularity  in  predominance  of  numbers  of  one 
sex  are  found  in  particular  matings  or  in  individual  birds.2  In 
none  of  these  cases  did  the  tendency  to  produce  one  sex  appear 
to  be  transmitted.  It  is  possible  that  the  occurrence  of  a  large  excess 
of  one  sex  was  purely  accidental. 

1  It  does  not  seem  to  me  necessary  to  say  more  on  the  subjects  of  contamina- 
tion and  telegony  than  is  said  above,  except  to  add  that  in  a  considerable  experi- 
ence with  different  kinds  of  poultry  I  have  never  seen  a  trace  of  contamination 
from  eggs  set  two  weeks  after  separation  from  a  male 'of  another  variety,  and  that, 
although  ever  since  1897  I  have  made  it  a  point  to  take  up  every  case  of  mental 
impression  reported  to  me,  in  not  a  single  instance  has  a  person  reporting  such 
cases  been  willing  to  answer  questions  or  to  have  the  case  investigated. 

2  The  most  remarkable  cases  I  have  known  or  heard  of  were  the  following :  In  the 
early  nineties  I  had  a  Houdan  male  that  for  two  seasons  mated  in  four  different  mat- 
ings, —  once  with  Houdan  hens,  once  with  Light  Brahmas,  once  with  Barred  Plym- 
outh Rocks,  and  once  with  Brown  Leghorns,  —  produced  regularly  about  five  pullets 
in  every  six  chickens.    Mr.  A.  C.  Smith  informed  me  that  the  celebrated  Barred 
Plymouth  Rock  male  Rally  produced  the  sexes  regularly  in  about  the  same  ratio, 
five  females  in  six  chicks,  —  a  quality  in  his  case  decidedly  objectionable,  the 
daughters  of  an  Exhibition  Barred  Rock  male  being  useful  only  for  breeding. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING      491 

Mating  systems.  Whenever  Standard  specimens  of  both  sexes 
can  be  produced  regularly  from  a  mating  of  a  Standard  male 
and  a  Standard  female,  the  practice  is  to  mate  in  that  way.  This 
is  called  the  single-mating  system.  When  the  Standard  require- 
ments for  males  and  females  of  a  variety  are  such  that  the  desired 
type  of  male  and  female  cannot  be  regularly  produced  from  a  mat- 
ing of  a  Standard  male  and  female,  two  distinct  lines,  or  sub- 
varieties,  are  developed,  one  to  produce  Standard  males  and  one 
to  produce  Standard  females.  This  is  called  the  double-mating 
system.  Whether  or  not  the  necessity  for  double  matings  shows 
inconsistency  in  the  Standard  depends  upon  the  points  of  view. 
From  the  practical  poultry  man's  point  of  view  it  does  ;  from  the 
fancier's  point  of  view  it  does  not.  The  occasion  for  double  mat- 
ings  arises  principally  because  of  sexual  differences  in  plumage 
color,  which  the  fancier  in  some  cases  would  intensify  and  in  others 
would  remove.  In  either  case  he  can  produce  what  he  considers 
the  finest  type  in  one  sex  only  at  the  sacrifice  of  his  favorite  color 
in  the  other.  The  particular  reasons  for  special  mating  will  appear 
in  the  discussions  of  matings  of  such  varieties  as  the  Barred  Plym- 
outh Rock  and  the  Brown  Leghorn.  Here  it  need  only  be  said, 
with  reference  to  the  general  question  of  the  system  to  be  used, 
that  in  all  varieties  for  which  the  double-mating  system  is  com- 
monly used,  a  breeder  who  adopts  the  single-mating  system  cannot 
compete,  in  the  production  of  high-quality  stock,  with  those  who 
use  the  other  system.  Intermediate  matings  (so  called)  are  some- 
times used,  in  which  a  male  about  medium  between  the  two  types 
of  males  used  in  the  distinct  lines  is  mated  with  females  of  both 
types.  That  method  may  give  satisfaction  when  a  breeder  works 
only  for  his  own  pleasure,  or  when  competition  is  not  too  strong. 

DETAILS  OF  MATINGS 

In  general  a  character  common  to  a  number  of  breeds  or  varieties  behaves 
the  same  way  wherever  found.  Its  behavior  sometimes  varies  because  of  differ- 
ent ancestral  influences,  but  on  the  whole  the  rules  for  mating  which  apply 
to  a  character  or  a  combination  of  characters  in  one  variety  will  apply  to  all 
similar  characters  and  combinations.  Hence,  in  a  general  consideration  of  de- 
tails of  mating  poultry  the  subject  may  be  greatly  simplified  by  considering 
similar  types  in  groups.  The  special  details  of  mating  are  principally  color 
details.  In  consideration  of  shape  points  the  application  of  the  rule  requires 


492  POULTRY  CULTURE 

only  knowledge  of  the  type  to  be  produced ;  in  substantial  points  of  shape 
"  like  closely  produces  like."  But  in  color  and  some  superficial  points  sex 
differences  and  tendencies  must  be  considered.  In  poultry  other  than  fowls  the 
color  varieties  are  few.  In  fowls  the  duplication  of  color  types  (varieties)  in 
breeds  (shape  varieties)  is  so  general  that  discussion  of  color  matings  can  be 
reduced  to  a  few  heads.  In  the  treatment  of  details  fowls  will  be  considered 
first,  and  the  order  of  consideration  of  objects  and  characters  will  be  (i)  egg 
production,  (2)  meat  production,  (3)  superficial  characters. 

Mating  fowls  for  egg  production.  In  common  practice  mating  for  egg  pro- 
duction deals  only  with  a  few  essential  characters.  Whatever  the  type  or  variety, 
when  eggs  are  the  special  object  the  male  should  be  an  active,  vigorous  bird,  and 
one  that  grew  quickly  and  matured  a  little  earlier  than  the  average  for  males  of 
his  race.  He  should  be  of  at  least  average  size  or,  in  a  variety  having  a  standard 
for  weight,  should  closely  approximate  that  weight.  The  hens  should  be  selected 
for  the  same  points,  except  that,  as  each  hen  influences  only  a  small  proportion 
of  the  offspring,  and  the  mating  ratio  is  usually  made  as  wide  as  possible,  it  is 
not  so  necessary  to  give  special  attention  to  the  point  of  early  maturity  in  indi- 
vidual cases.  If  the  mating  is  made, 'as  it  should  be,  before  February,  any  pullets 
that  are  then  well  developed  and  laying  may  be  used  with  reasonable  assurance 
that  the  proportion  of  slower-maturing  birds  is  not  large  enough  to  materially 
affect  the  general  result,  provided  the  male  is  not  one  that  developed  slowly. 
The  matter  of  size  is  more  important  in  selecting  breeders  to  produce  layers 
than  in  selecting  layers.  Slightly  undersized  hens  often  lay  as  well,  or  better, 
than  larger  hens,  and  lay  as  large  eggs.  A  male  a  little  under  size  may  give 
offspring  not  notably  smaller  than  those  of  a  somewhat  larger  male,  but  the 
continued  use  of  breeders  of  less  than  average  size  for  their  kind  quickly  reduces 
the  average  size  of  the  stock.  Even  with  care  to  use  only  birds  not  below  medium 
size,  the  proportion  of  smaller  stock  is  usually  larger  than  desirable.  Many 
poultry  keepers  who  are  indifferent  to  this  point  in  mating  offset  their  error  by 
careful  selection  of  the  eggs  set,  taking  only  such  as  are  of  good  size,  form,  and 
color.  When  only  a  small  proportion  of  the  eggs  are  to  be  set,  this  may  be  the 
more  convenient  and  economical  way  to  select ;  but  since  the  hens  of  medium 
size,  or  larger,  are  usually  the  hens  that  lay  the  kind  of  eggs  selected,  it  is 
better,  when  the  object  is  to  get  as  large  a  proportion  of  selected  eggs  as  pos- 
sible, to  exclude  small  birds  from  the  matings. 

Breeding  for  improvement  in  egg  production.  The  practice  in  mating  just  de- 
scribed, with  good  management  in  growing  and  handling  the  stock,  will  bring  the 
egg  production  from  poor-laying  flocks  to  a  good  annual  average,  with  occasional 
production  in  a  part  of  a  stock  or  for  a  season  much  above  the  average.  These 
occasional  instances  of  great  production  stimulate  interest  in  the  question  of 
bringing  the  common  average  production  of  a  stock  up  to  the  high  marks,  and 
the  results  from  the  best  producers  proportionately  higher.  Many  breeders 
have  tried  to  develop  heavy-laying  strains  from  known  great  producers.  Results 
have  sometimes  seemed  encouraging  in  a  few  individuals,  but  there  are  no 
authentic  records  of  extraordinary  laying  characteristics  continued  in  a  stock,  or 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


493 


even  in  selected  specimens,  for  more  than  a  very  short  term  of  years.  More 
careful  experiments  on  an  extensive  scale  have  been  carried  on  for  many  years 
at  the  Maine  Experiment  Station,  with  similar  results.1  The  present  line  of 
experiment  at  this  station  seeks  to  determine  how  far  egg  production  may  be 
improved  by  breeding  from  prepotent  heavy  layers.  As  far  as  increase  in  possi- 
bilities of  egg  production  in  the  individual  is  concerned,  the  whole  question 
seems  to  depend  on  whether  or  not  the  number  of  ovules  produced  by  a  bird 
is  congenitally  fixed  in  the  individual,  variable  in  individuals,  and  generally  so 
small  that  the  supply  might 
be  exhausted  within  the  aver- 
age productive  life  of  a  hen, 
that  is,  within  three  or  four 
years.  It  has  been  commonly 
assumed  that  the  possibilities 
of  production  in  the  ordinary 
.unimproved  hen  were  small 
and  were  increased  by  selec- 
tion. It  has  been  supposed 
that  ordinarily  a  hen  having 
laid  a  few  hundred  eggs  would 
permanently  cease  because  of 
the  exhaustion  of  the  supply 
of  ovules.  The  observations  of 
Raymond  Pearl  and  Frank  M. 
Surface  on  the  numbers  of 
visible  ovules  indicate  that 
there  is  always  present  a 
greater  supply  of  elementary 
eggs  than  any  hen  is  capable 
of  developing.  Here,  as  every- 
where, nature  is  prodigal  with 
the  elements  of  life.  With  FIG.  482.  Dark  Brahma  cockerel  with  extraor- 
the  number  of  elementary  dinary  breast  development.  (Photograph  from 
eggs  in  an  ordinary  hen  five  owner>  F-  w-  Rogers,  Brockton,  Mass.) 

or  six  times  as  great  as  the 

total  of  eggs  laid  by  the  average  hen  kept  until  three  years  old,  it  is  plain  that 
the  practical  problem  in  breeding  for  increase  in  egg  production  is  to  produce 
stock  with  the  substance,  constitution,  and  functional  vigor  required  for  the  com- 
bined strains  of  heavy  egg  production  and  reproduction.  As  a  rule,  it  is  found  that 

1  Actually  the  first  line  of  experiment  at  this  station  showed  a  decrease  in 
egg  production,  but  the  results  are  not  strictly  comparable  to  the  results  of 
experiments  of  individuals,  because  the  individual  breeder  discards  all  apparently 
inferior  specimens,  while  at  this  station  close  selection  of  breeders  was  not  fol- 
lowed by  close  selection  of  pullets  for  layers,  except  in  one  or  two  instances 
for  special  observation. 


494 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


as  breeders  the  greatest  producers  are  inferior  to  average  good  producers.  Hens 
producing  two  hundred  eggs  in  a  year  are  not  as  likely  to  produce  daughters 
that  are  extraordinary  layers  as  are  hens  that  have  performed  more  moderately. 
The  great  laying  individuals  come  generally  from  moderate  layers  of  strong 
constitution.  Extreme  heavy  laying  saps  vitality  and  tends  to  sterility. 

In  the  light  of  the  commonly  observed  facts  as  to  the  increase  of  individual 
egg  production,  the  extraordinary  layer  appears  as  the  culmination  of  the  devel- 
opment of  the  tendency  and  capacity  to  develop  eggs.  In  general,  what  may  be 


FIG.  483.    Silver-Gray  Dorking  cock,  ideal  table  shape.    (Photograph  from 
owner,  Arthur  C.  Major,  Ditton,  Langley,  Bucks,  England) 

regarded  as  the  supreme  effort  in  egg  production  leaves  the  individual  without 
reserve  force  for  reproduction.  A  rare  individual  with  vitality  enough  for  both 
may  prove  a  good  producer  of  heavy-laying  stock.  Such  an  individual,  of  great 
prepotency,  might  be  bred,  with  striking  results  in  high  egg  production,  for  a  gen- 
eration or  two,  but  the  steady  drain  of  egg  production,  and  its  ordinary  effect  on 
reproduction,  tends  always  to  abrupt  cessations  of  progress  in  this  direction. 

Influence  of  the  male  on  production  of  eggs.  If  the  supply  of  elementary 
eggs  is  always  ample  the  only  influence  of  the  male  to  be  considered  is  his 
influence  on  those  characters  which  affect  the  capacity  to  develop  eggs.  It  has 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     495 


FIG.  484.    Light  Brahma  cock  * 

laying  strains.  Within  heavy-laying  stocks 
of  breeding  shows  that  the  sons  of 
heavy-laying  hens  reproduce  that 
quality  in  the  same  manner  as  the 
daughters.  Some  males  do  unques- 
tionably have  a  strong  influence  on 
the  laying  capacity  of  their  daughters, 
but  it  seems  to  be  due  to  transmission 
of  the  characters  that  give  capacity,  to 
develop  eggs. 

Mating  for  table  poultry.  In  the 
development  of  poultry  for  food  pur- 
poses, more  than  in  any  other  line  of 
poultry  breeding,  the  conditions  of 
production  tend  constantly  toward  an 
undesirable  modification  of  form  and 

1  These  birds  won  prizes  for  best- 
shaped  Light  Brahmas  at  the  Boston 
Show  when  this  variety  was  one  of  the 
big  classes  there.  They  are  birds  of  a 
good  utility  type. 


repeatedly  been  found  by 
breeders  who  had  made 
marked  increase  in  egg 
production  by  simple  selec- 
tion and  good  care,  and 
by  close  breeding  for  a 
term  of  years,  that  when 
they  went  outside  of  their 
stock  for  new  blood,  the 
introduction  of  males  of 
different  breeding  was  im- 
mediately followed  by  a 
sharp  decline  in  egg  pro- 
duction. This  fact  has 
been  one  of  the  strong 
arguments  in  favor  of  the 
theory  that  the  number  of 
elementary  eggs  was  rela- 
tively small  and  was  pro- 
gressively increased  by 
individual  variation  and 
selection.  Such  results  are 
often  attributed  to  the  use 
of  males  not  of  heavy- 
the  lack  of  uniformity  in  results 


FIG.  485.    Light  Brahma  hen1 


496 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


reduction  of  vitality.  The  develop- 
ment of  a  meat-type  fowl  that  will 
grow  quickly,  fatten  readily,  and  still 
produce,  at  the  season  when  eggs  are 
most  difficult  to  secure,  an  abundance 
of  eggs  that  will  hatch  a  high  per- 
centage of  vigorous  chickens,  is  the 
most  difficult  line  of  work  with  poul- 
try. A  flying  bird  has  enormous 
development  of  the  breast,  that  is, 
of  the  muscles  which  move  the 
wings ;  the  proportion  of  meat  else- 
where is  very  small.  Terrestrial 
birds  in  the  natural  state  have  the 
muscles  of  the  wings  and  legs  more 
equally  developed,  but  in  every  case 
the  relative  development  of  muscles 

of  the  anterior  and  posterior  sets  of  limbs,  with  their  adaptations  to  different 

methods    of     locomotion,    depends 

upon  the  habits  of  the  bird  and  the 

amount  of  use  of  each.    When  birds 

are  domesticated  and  the  flying  habit 

discouraged,  the  inevitable  result  is 

a  reduction  of  the  muscles  of  the 


FIG.  486.    A  "cochiny"  Light  Brahma 
hen,  not  a  utility  type 


FIG.  487.   Long-bodied  Barred  Plym- 
outh Rock  pullet l 


FIG.  488.    Barred  Plymouth  Rock  cock,1 
good  utility  type 

1  Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts.    Photograph 
by  Schilling. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     497 


wings  and  an  enlarge- 
ment of  the  muscles  of 
the  legs ;  and  the  larger 
the  bird,  the  more  marked 
is  the  difference  in  devel- 
opment of  the  wing  and 
leg  muscles.  In  flying 
birds  the  meat  of  the  legs 
and  that  of  the  breast  (or 
wing  muscles)  are  of  al- 
most the  same  color.  In 
most  domestic  land  birds 
the  meat  of  the  fore  part 
of  the  body  is  light  (or 
"  white  "),  that  of  the  hind 
part,  dark.  In  waterfowl, 
not  so  far  removed  from 
the  flying  habit,  the  meat 
of  the  different  parts  is 
much  the  same  in  color, 
but  with  a  tendency  to 
lighter  color  in  the  ante- 
rior portions.  Difference 
in  color  of  muscles  of 
different  sets  of  organs  of 
locomotion  in  domestic 
poultry  is  plainly  due  to  difference 
in  development  and  use.  Through 
disuse  the  muscles  of  the  wings, 
which  are  the  most  highly  devel- 
oped muscles  of  the  normal  bird, 
lose  color,  become  soft,  and  finally 
diminish  in  size.  But  it  is  this  meat 
which  most  people  prefer ;  hence  it 
becomes  necessary  for  the  breeder 
of  table  poultry  to  give  particular 
attention  to  the  development  of  the 
white  meat,  that  is,  to  keep  up  the 
quantity  of  development  in  this 
character  when  its  natural  tendency 
is  to  diminish.  This  he  can  do  only 
by  the  most  rigid  selection  of  breed- 
ing birds  well  developed  in  this  sec- 
tion, and  by  different  methods  of 
handling  the  birds  to  be  developed 


FIG.  489.    Partridge  Cochin  cock.    (Photograph  by 
Graham) 


FIG.  490.    Partridge  Cochin  hen. 
tograph  by  Graham) 


(Pho- 


498 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  491.     White    Cochin   hen. 
graph  by  Graham) 


(Photo- 


for  breeding  purposes  and  those  to 
be  used  for  food  as  soon  as  they 
have  reached  the  desired  stage  of 
development.  Stock  to  be  devel- 
oped for  breeding  purposes  must 
be  allowed  and  even  encouraged l 
to  use  the  wings  enough  to  coun- 
teract the  tendency  to  atrophy 
through  disuse.2  The  tendency  to 
fatten,  most  desirable  in  stock  bred 
for  the  table,  is  directly  opposed  to 
the  continued  production  of  eggs. 
A  degree  of  fatness  may  be  main- 
tained with  great  prolificacy  and 
breeding  power,  but  the  general 
tendency  of  breeding  from  birds 
that  fatten  readily  is  to  reduce  egg 
production  and  fertility.  Unavoid- 
able and  troublesome  as  such  con- 
ditions are,  the  difficulties  they 

present  may  be  overcome  by  selecting  as  breeders  individuals  which  show, 

with  the  fullest  development  of  form,  considerable  activity,  and  by  properly 

differentiating  between  methods  of 

managing  breeding  stock  and  stock 

not  to  be  used  for  that  purpose. 


1  In   such  heavy  breeds   as   the 
Brahma  and  Cochin,  the    difficulty 
that  some  of  the  birds  have  in  flying 
to  ordinary  roosts  two  feet  or  so  from 
the  ground  leads  some  breeders  to 
discard  roosts  and  bed  the  birds  on 
the  floor.     Invariably  the   stock  of 
such  breeders  will,  after  some  years, 
become  conspicuously   deficient   in 
breast.    A  fowl  that,  when  in  health, 
cannot  fly  to  a  roost  two  feet  from 
the  floor  ought  never  to  be  consid- 
ered for  breeding  table  poultry. ' 

2  This  does  not  necessarily  mean 
that  the  bird  should  have  the  oppor- 
tunity or  develop  the  ability  to  fly 
high.   By  flapping  the  wings,  by  using 
them  in  running,  and  by  low,  short 
flights,  a  bird  may  give  its  wing  mus- 
cles  enough   exercise   to   maintain 
development. 


FIG.  492.     White   Plymouth  Rock  cock, 

owned  by  Elm  Poultry  Yards,  Hartford, 

Connecticut 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


499 


FIG.  493.  White  Orpington  hen.  (Pho- 
tograph from  United  States  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture) 


What  the  breeder  of  table  poultry 
aims  to  secure  in  his  stock  is  full  form, 
quick  growth,  and  a  fattening  tendency 
strong  enough  to  make  the  birds  fatten 
readily  under  favoring  conditions,  yet 
not  so  strong  as  to  be  troublesome 
under  the  usual  conditions  given  to 
laying  and  breeding  stock.  As  a  rule, 
that  part  of  an  individual's  lifetime  in 
which  the  desired  balance  of  qualities 
can  be  maintained  is  short  as  compared 
with  the  normal  productive  life  of  its 
kind.  So  we  find  that  generally  types 
that  make  good  poultry  are  the  profitable 
layers  and  breeders  for  only  one,  or  at 
most  two,  seasons  ;  but  occasional  indi- 
viduals are  found  which,  in  this  and 
other  points  to  be  considered  by  the 
breeder  of  table  poultry,  are  much  bet- 
ter than  the  average.  A  bird  of  table- 
bred  stock  of  any  kind  of  poultry  that  will  keep  in  good  laying  and  breeding 
condition  for  two,  three,  or  more  years  is  of  great  value  for  breeding  this  class 
of  stock,  not  only  because  it  gives  its  progeny  something  of  the  general- 
purpose  character  but  because  it 
produces  more,  and  more  vigor- 
ous, offspring,  and  is  a  service- 
able breeder  for  several  seasons. 
In  most  stocks  and  breeds  used 
especially  for  table  poultry  the 
tendency  to  fatten  is  strong 
enough  to  make  any  vigorous 
birds  take  on  fat  readily  when 
put  up  for  fattening.  In  devel- 
oping a  table  type  from  an  egg 
type,  fattening  tendency  must  be 
given  special  consideration,  but 
in  improving  existing  meat  types 
a  degree  of  recessiveness  in  that 
character  is  to  be  preferred. 

Shape  in  table  poultry.  In 
breeding  for  the  table,  shape 
must  be  considered  on  a  differ- 
ent basis  from  that  used  in 
breeding  to  a  special  breed  shape.  FIG.  494.  White  Orpington  cock.  (Photo- 
The  shape  distinctions  between  graph  by  Graham) 


500 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  495.  White  Plymouth  Rock  hen 

(Photograph  from  owner,  Rockandotte 

Farm,  Southboro,  Massachusetts) 


breeds  nearly  the  same  in  size  are 
arbitrary.  It  is  no  advantage  to  a 
Plymouth  Rock  to  have  a  body  a  very 
little  longer  than  that  of  a  typical 
Wyandotte,  or  to  weigh  a  little  heavier ; 
but  the  heavier  fowl  furnishes  more 
meat  (if  the  proportion  of  bone,  offal, 
and  edible  meat  are  the  same),  and 
(other  proportions  being  approximately 
the  same)  the  longer-bodied  fowl  fur- 
nishes more  of  the  preferred  white  meat 
than  the  other.  This  last  is  true  as  to 
all  poultry ;  if  a  breeder,  whatever  kind 
or  variety  he  is  working  with,  wants  to 
get  the  largest  possible  proportion  of 
white  meat,  he  must  give  particular 
attention  to  length  of  body,  not  be- 
cause length  is  more  important  than 
the  other  dimensions,  but  because  the 
lack  of  it  gives  an  impression  of 
plumpness  and  meatiness  that  is  often 
misleading.1  If  Standard  type  is  not  to  be  considered,  the  longer  the  body 
can  be  made  without  unduly  lengthening  legs  and  neck,  or  making  the  bird 
unsymmetrical,  the  better. 
When  Standard  require- 
ments as  to  shape  must  be 
observed,  the  body  should 
be  as  long  as  may  be  with- 
out departing  from  the  ap- 
proved type;  that  is,  in 
selecting  breeding  birds, 
the  breeder  of  table  poul- 
try of  a  Standard  variety 
should  always  keep  away 
from  the  short-backed  and 
short-bodied  types  of  that 
variety. 

1  In  the  open  market 
this  is  an  advantage  to 
the  short  bird ;  for  a  regu- 
lar trade  where  the  buyer 
practically  relies  upon  the 
seller  to  give  him  satisfac- 
tory goods,  the  long-bodied 
bird,  if  properly  filled  out,  FIG.  496.  White  Plymouth  Rock  cock.  (Photo- 
is  better.  graph  from  Rockandotte  Farm) 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


501 


FIG.  497.    White  Wyandotte  cock.    (Pho- 
tograph from  owner,  Rockandotte  Farm) 

little  higher  on  the  legs,  with  a  shorter  tail 
the  whole  type  is  different.    Heavy-weight 
type ;   Houdans  and  Faverolles  show  it 
very  strongly.    Even  in  the  Asiatics  the 
nearer  we  can  get  to  the  Dorking  model 
body  without   losing   the   carriage   and 
station  which  have  been   developed  in 
the  Asiatic  class,  the  better  table  fowl 
we  get. 

1  With  ideal  table  shape  it  might  be 
supposed  that  the  Dorking  would  be  more 
popular  in  America.  I  have  long  thought 
that  it  would  have  been  but  for  a  reputa- 
tion for  delicacy  of  constitution  (which  it 
did  not  deserve),  and  for  its  large  comb 
and  superfluous  toes.  Such  superfluous 
developments  of  appendages  have  always 
been  objectionable  to  the  mass  of  Ameri- 
can poultrymen.  Add  to  these  objections 
the  fact  that  the  skin  of  the  typical  Dork- 
ing is  not  yellow,  and  the  superficial  faults 
more  than  overbalance,  in  the  popular 
mind,  the  substantial  merits. 


With  all  the  length  of  body  that 
the  bird  can^  stand,  or  the  Standard 
will  permit,  the  breeder  should  select 
for  breadth  and  depth  of  body,  and 
fullness  of  breast.  The  Dorking 
shape  is  as  nearly  an  ideal  table 
shape  as  any  breed  shape,  the 
combination  of  length,  depth,  and 
breadth  of  frame,  and  fullness  of 
muscular  development  being,  in  the 
finest  types  of  the  breed,  as  near 
perfection  as  can  be  imagined.1 
This  shape  may  be  closely  approxi- 
mated in  a  number  of  other  breeds 
without  altogether  losing  the  types 
of  those  breeds.  This  is  most  ap-^ 
parent  when  the  bodies  of  females 
are  compared.  A  Plymouth  Rock 
hen  of  good  length,  breadth,  and 
depth  of  body,  and  exceptionally 
good  breast  development  for  the 
breed,  will  be  a  very  good  Dork- 
ing shape ;  but  because  it  stands  a 
and  smaller  comb,  the  impression  of 
Leghorns  tend  toward  the  Dorking 


FIG.  498.     White  Wyandotte  hen 
(Photograph    from    owner,    Rock- 
andotte Farm) 


502 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


In  selecting  birds  for  breeding,  the 
touch  as  well  as  by  the^eye.   He  should 


FIG.  499.    Young  White  Wyandotte 

cockerel.    (Photograph  from  owner, 

A.  G.  Duston,  South  Framingham, 

Massachusetts) 

In  ducks,  geese,  and  turkeys  there  is 
common  faults  are  lack  of  breadth  and 


poultry  breeder  should  judge  shape  by 
handle  the  birds,  lifting  them  with  the 
keel  across  his  palm  so  that  his  fin- 
gers on  one  side  and  thumb  on  the 
other  give  him  at  once  the  measure 
of  development  of  meat  on  the  body. 
With  a  little  practice  the  sense  of 
touch  becomes  much  more  reliable  for 
this  than  the  eye.  The  bird  that,  when 
balanced  on  his  hand,  fills  it  and 
spreads  it  until  it  is  well  opened,  will 
hardly  fail  to  be  well  meated  all  over. 
Quality  of  meat  depends  primarily 
on  fineness  of  fiber,  secondarily  on 
conditions  under  which  the  bird  is 
grown.  Coarse-fibered  meat  may  be 
soft  if  the  bird  is  so  grown  as  to 
keep  it  soft,  but  a  bird  of  fine  fiber 
grown  under  similar  conditions  will 
be  far  superior.  Identification  of  this 
quality  in  the  living  bird  can  be  made 
with  sufficient  accuracy  by  observa- 
tion of  the  texture  of  comb  and  wat- 
tles, and  of  the  general  structure  of 
head  and  feet.  If  these  appear  strong 
without  coarseness,  the  structure  of 
the  muscular  fiber  will  usually  be  fine, 
usually  ample  length  of  body,  and  the 
depth  of  body,  and,  in  the  waterfowl, 


FIG.  500.    Pekin  Ducks  at  Connecticut  Agricultural  College.    (Photograph  from 

the  college) 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


503 


lack  of  fullness  of 
breast.  The  best  de- 
velopment of  the 
table  type  in  both 
ducks  and  geese  is 
secured  by  develop- 
ing the  keel  as  it  is 
typically  in  Stand- 
ard specimens  of  the 
Rouen  and  Ayles- 
bury  ducks  and  of 
Toulouse  and  Em- 
den  geese.  The  typ- 
ical exhibition  Pekin 
duck  is  not  so 
well  developed  in 
this  respect  as  the 
others  mentioned, 
but  many  market 

duck  growers  have  stocks  of  Pekins  in  which  this  feature  is  fully  developed. 
In  turkeys  of  the  best  table  form  the  breast  is  more  conspicuously  developed 
than  in  any  other  poultry ;  this  is  in  accord  with  the  flying  powers  of  the  bird. 


FIG.  501.  Aylesbury  duck.  (Photograph  from  E.  T.  Brown) 


FIG.  502.   Aylesbury  ducks  at  College  Poultry  Farm,  Reading,  England.    (Photo- 
graph from  E.  T.  Brown)1 

The  shape  and  carriage  of  the  head,  neck,  legs,  and  tail  are  of  importance  in 
selecting  for  the  table  only  in  so  far  as  they  are  correlated  with  and  indicate 
faults  in  shape  of  body,  or  lack  of  vigor.  The  well-developed  body,  if  designed 
only  for  the  table,  is  not  much  the  worse  for  that  purpose  if  the  legs  are  a  little 

1  Note  that,  with  the  exception  of  the  second  duck  from  the  right  in  Fig.  502, 
the  Aylesburys  do  not  show  the  type  seen  in  Fig.  501  ,but  are  more  like  the 
Pekins  in  Fig.  500, 


504 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.   503.    Pekin    drake   four  months  old,  weighing 

nine   pounds,   owned  by   H.  B.  Robinson,   Reading, 

Massachusetts 


FIG.  504.  Pekin  duck,  owned  by  H .  B.  Robinson 


weak  or  a  little  too  long 
to  look  well,  if  the  back 
is  a  little  crooked  and 
the  tail  carried  too  high 
or  too  low  to  look  well, 
or  carried  awry,  or  if 
the  head  and  neck  ap- 
pear a  little  too  fine; 
but  if  the  bird  is  to  be 
used  for  breeding,  all 
such  faults  should  be 
carefully  avoided.  The 
color  of  the  plumage 
in  table  poultry  is  of 
importance  only  as  it 
affects  ease  of  dressing, 
and  here  it  is  of  most 
importance  when  stock 
is  to  be  marketed  while 
immature. 

Selection  for  shape 
points  in  mating  stand- 
ard poultry.  In  se- 
lecting for  exhibition 
Standard  shape  the  type  as 
a  whole  must  be  considered. 
This  requires  particular  at- 
tention to  the  head  and  its 
appurtenances,  and  to  the 
neck,  tail,  and  legs ;  for  it  is 
these  parts  and  their  adjust- 
ment to  the  body  that  chiefly 
distinguish  different  breeds  of 
the  same  general  type  or  class. 
A  bird  that  carries  both  head 
and  tail  high  will  appear 
shorter,  one  that  carries  head 
and  tail  low  longer,  than  it  is, 
because  the  carriage  of  the 
head  and  tail  makes  a  differ- 
ence in  the  apparent  length 
of  the  back.  In  market  poul- 
try this  is  not  a  material  point, 
for  in  selecting  for  breeders  the 
length  of  keel,  as  ascertained 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


505 


FIG.  505.    Rouen  drake,  owned  by  White  Birch  Poul- 
try Farm,  Bridgewater,  Massachusetts 


by  touch,  is  a  better 
test  of  length  in  the 
body  of  the  breeding 
bird  than  the  length  of 
the  bird  as  it  appears 
to  the  eye,  and  when 
the  bird  is  dressed,  the 
true  length  is  apparent ; 
but  in  judging  exhibi- 
tion stock,  considered 
section  by  section,  the 
back  is  judged  as  it 
appears,  and  a  bird  of 
this  character  may  be 
penalized  in  several 
sections  for  a  fault 
which  strictly  belongs 
to  one  or  two.  A  slight 
difference  in  length  of 
leg  will  make  a  marked 
difference  in  the  station 

and  style  of  the  bird.    In  nearly  all  breeds  of  fowls  American  fanciers  want 
the  leg  (shank  and  thigh)  long  enough  to  show  the  hock  and  something  of 
the  outline  of  the  thigh  when  the  bird  is  seen  in  profile.   The  only  clean-legged 
breeds  in  which  a  leg  with  shank 
appearing  to  come  right  out  of 
the  body  is  at  all  favored  are 
the   Dorkings  and  Orpingtons. 
In  all  others  the  thigh   should 
show,  and  for  most  of  them  this 
provision  is  a  part  of  the  un- 
written standard,  for  only  in  the 
Wyandotte  and   Game  descrip- 
tions  is   this    point   mentioned 
in  the  "  American  Standard  of 
Perfection." 

The  shape  of  the  wings  sel- 
dom requires  special  considera- 
tion, except  in  case  of  deformity 
of  the  first  joint,  causing,  when 
slight,  inability  to  properly  fold 
the  wing.  When  the  defect  is 
more  serious  the  wing  may  hang 
badly  and  some  of  the  feathers  FlG.  5o6.  Rouen  duck,  owned  by  White 
be  badly  twisted.  The  worst  Birch  Poultry  Farm 


506 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


cases  are  so  conspicuous  that  they  attract  attention  at  once.    The  others  are 
often  overlooked  because,  if  noticed,  it  is  supposed  that  the  failure  to  tuck  the 

wing  is  due  to  fright  from  handling, 
or  that,  in  the  case  of  cocks,  the  dis- 
arrangement of  the  flights  is  due  to  a 
slight  slip  of  the  wing  in  flirting, 
which  will  soon  be  readjusted.  "This 
fault  is  very  common  also  in  ducks 
and  geese.  The  breeder  should  make 
sure  that  every  bird  selected  for 
breeding  has  perfect  wings  and  can 
carry  them  properly.  Failure  to  do  so 
need  not  always  lead  to  rejection  of 
the  bird,  but  it  calls  for  special  care  in 
mating.  If  two  birds  with  this  fault 
are  bred  together,  the  result  is  likely 
to  be  a  lot  of  offspring  with  deformed 


FIG.  507.    White-Crested  Black  Polish 

hen,  owned  by  William  McNeil,  Lo'n- 

don,  Ontario 


wings. 

The  shape  of   the   head  appurte- 
nances —  comb,    wattles,    ear    lobes, 

crest,  and  beard  —  demands  careful  attention,  for  excellence  in  these  points  is 

essential  in  exhibition  stock,  and  even  if  a  breeder  is  not  breeding  for  show 

or  sale,  and  makes  substantial  qualities 

of  first  importance,  there  is  no  need  of 

breeding  birds  good  in  other  respects  but 

with  heads  for  which  he  has  constantly  to 

apologize.     Birds  selected  for  breeders 

should  have  these  characters  of  average 

good  quality  for  their  type,  and  serious 

defects  in  them  should  be  admitted  only 

w'hen  a  bird  is  so  good  in  other  respects 

that  it  is  policy  to  breed  it  even  with  the 

expectation  of  discarding  a  considerable 

part  of  its  progeny  for  its  fault.    As  a 

rule,  there  are  no  irregularities  in  mating 

to  meet  Standard  requirements  in  these 

features.  The  breeder  mates  birds  having 

the  character,  in  both  sexes,  as  near  as 

may  be  to  what  he  wants.   An  exception 

is  in  mating  to  produce  the  male  and  fe- 
male types  of  comb  in  large  single-combed 


FIG.  508.  White-Crested  Black  Pol- 
ish hen.  (Photograph  from  owner, 
Charles  L.  Seely,  Afton,  New  York) l 


1  Figs.  507  and  509  show  a  very  pretty,  dainty  type  of  Polish,  as  bred  strictly 
for  fancy.  The  photographs  were  taken  by  the  author  in  1901  or  1902.  Figs.  508 
and  510  show  a  larger,  more  rugged  type  bred  by  a  farmer  who  is  a  Polish  fancier. 
This  is  the  style  now  favored  by  breeders. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


507 


fowls.  The  comb  of  the  male, 
however  large,  is  required  to 
stand  straight ;  the  comb  of 
the  female  must  always  droop 
to  one  side.  To  get  the  strong, 
straight  comb  of  the  Exhibition 
male,  females  with  combs  that 
droop  slightly  or  not  at  all 
must  be  used ;  to  get  the  droop- 
ing comb  of  the  Exhibition  fe- 
male, males  with  weak  combs 
tending  to  lop,  or  droop,  must 
be  bred  with  females  with  the 
required  type  -of  comb.  In  a 
variety  like  the  Brown  Leg- 
horn, in  which  a  double-mating 
system  is  used  for  color,  the 
requirements  for  producing 
the  desired  accompanying  type 
breed  the  females  of  the  male 
males  of  the  female  line  with 


FIG.  509.    White-Crested  Black  Polish  cock, 
owned  by  William  McNeil 

of  comb  are  simple.  All  that  is  necessary  is  to 
line  with  small,  rather  straight  combs,  and  the 
large  combs  with  a  tendency  to 
droop.  In  varieties  in  which 
special  color  matings  are  not 
required,  the  breeder  usually 
breeds  from  males  with  combs 
as  thin  as  will  stand  straight, 
and  use  with  them  some  fe- 
males with  thin,  drooping 
combs  and  some  with  smaller, 
thicker  combs  standing  straight 
or  nearly  straight. 

COLOR   MATINGS  OF 
POULTRY 


Mating  black-red  fowls.  Of 
fowls  with  the  colors  and  gen- 
eral color  pattern  of  the  original 
type  there  are  many  varieties, 
-  Black-Red  and  Brown-Red 
Games  of  the  English,  Exhibi- 
tion, and  Bantam  types,  Black-Red  Malays  and  Malay  Bantams,  Brown  Leg- 
horns, Cornish  Indian  Games,  Partridge  Cochins,  Partridge  Cochin  Bantams, 
Partridge  Plymouth  Rocks,  Partridge  Wyandottes,  and  Redcaps.  In  all  of 


FIG.  510.    White-Crested   Black   Polish  cock 
(Photograph  from  owner,  Charles  L.  Seely) 


508 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  511.    Stylish  Single-Combed  Brown 
Leghorn  cockerel1 


these  the  male  is  roughly  de- 
scribed as  having  a  black 
breast,  body,  and  tail,  with 
a  red  back,  and  the  female  as 
brown.  When  details  of  color 
are  examined  the  males  are 
found  to  vary  in  the  shade  of 
red,  the  narrow  red  feathers 
of  neck,  hackle,  and  saddle 
being  sometimes  striped  with 
black,  and  the  red  and  black 
in  the  wings  being  regularly 
distributed,  the  longest  flight 
feathers  nearly  black,  and  red 
or  brown  appearing  usually 
in  a  distinct  line  along  the 
outer  edge  of  the  narrower 
outer  web  of  each  flight 
feather,  or  in  irregular  and  less 
distinct  patches  in  the  broader 
«  inner  web.  In  the  secondaries 

the  black  is  found  regularly  on  the  inner  web,  not  quite  covering  it ;  the  red, 

on  the  outer  web  and  quill,  and  extending  a  little  way  on  the  inner  web.    The 

wing  coverts  are  black,  the  wing  bows 

red.     In   the   darker   varieties,    as   the 

Cornish  Indian  Game  and  the  Redcap, 

the  black  tends  strongly  to  encroach  on 

the  red  areas.    In  the  lighter  varieties,  as 

in  the  pullet-breeding  Brown  Leghorn 

males,  the  red  tends  strongly  to  encroach 

on  the  black.    The  object  of  the  fancier 

is  to  keep  the  different  colors  distributed 

as  exactly  as  possible  in  accordance  with 

the  Standard  specifications. 

In  the  females  of  the  black-red  color 

type  are  found  two  styles  of  distribu- 
tion of  color.    On  the  Brown  Leghorn 

there  is  no  regular  pattern,  but  the  dark 

brown  appears  as  a  fine,  even  stippling 

on  the  back  and  wings  (except  'where 

there  is  black  in  the  male),  while  the 

breast  is  a  redder  brown  and  the  under  part  of  the  body  an  ashy  brown.    In 

females  of  the  other  varieties  the  Standard  calls  for  a  light  brown  or. bay 

1  Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts.    Photograph 
by  Schilling. 


FIG.  512.    Stylish  Single-Combed 
Brown  Leghorn  Pullet1 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     509 


FIG.  513.   Single-Combed  Brown  Leghorn 
cock,  very  full  breast1 


ground  all  over,  and  on  this  ground 
two  or  three  pencilings  of  darker 
brown  on  each  feather,  except  where 
feathers  are  black  in  wings  and  tail, 

^    .^*  '  JT   '  anc*  m  t^ie  hackle  where  the  feathers 

**  jH  /     /?*J|iv,          are  striPed  with  black. 

These  Standard  color  require- 
ments for  the  different  sexes  are  in 
a  measure  incompatible.  There  is  a 
natural  difference  in  the  coloration 
of  the  sexes.  The  tendency  in  the 
male  is  toward  greater  intensity  of 
color  and  the  occurrence  of  the 
more  brilliant  color  in  the  distinctive 
male  plumage ;  the  tendency  in  the 
female  is  toward  a  duller  tone  and 
a  more  uniform  distribution  of 
colors.  But  in  bisexual  reproduc- 
tion these  tendencies  in  a  measure 
counteract  each  other,  as  the  breeder 
of  fowls  of  this  color  type  finds 
when  he  tries  to  produce,  from 

females  in  which  the  colors  are  distributed,  males  with  colors  distinctly  sep- 
arated, and  from  males  in  which  he  has  segregated  the  colors  in  different 
sections,  females  in  which  the  colors  are 
distributed  through  all  sections.  His 
difficulties  are  increased  when,  as  in  the 
penciled  varieties,  he  tries  to  secure  a 
general  separation  by  sections  of  color 
in  the  male,  and  in  the  female  the  same 
distribution  of  color  in  nearly  all  sections, 
with  separation  of  the  colors  in  a  distinct 
pattern  in  each  feather. 

Very  early  in  the  development  of 
colors  in  black-red  types  fanciers  dis- 
covered that  the  production  of  males 
and  females  of  the  desired  colors  from 
matings  of  Standard  specimens  was  un- 
certain; that  the  male  with  solid  black 
breast,  mated  with  ^he  female  of  correct 
shade  and  type,  was  likely  to  produce 
(through  cross  heredity  in  direct  trans- 
mission, and  the  blending  of  colors) 


FIG.  514.    Single-Combed  Brown 
Leghorn  hen  1 


1  Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts.    Photograph 
by  Schilling. 


510 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


males  with  the  black  of  the  breast  and  body  more  or  less  marked  or  tinged 
with  red,  and  females  with  a  superabundance  of  black.  It  was  found  that 
for  the  regular  production  of  males  with  colors  distinctly  separated,  females  in 
which  the  tendency  was  strong  must  be 
used,  and  for  the  regular  production  of 
females  with  the  colors  distributed  uni- 
formly as  to  sections,  and  separated  on 
feathers,  males  in  which  that  tendency 
was  strong  must  be  used.  It  was  found 
also  that  the  external  indications  (the 
indications  in  the  plumage  itself)  of 
color-breeding  tendencies  were  usually 


FIG.  516.    Single-Combed  Brown 
Leghorn  hen1      .  t,1*-.,. 


FIG.  515.    Single-Combed  Brown 
Leghorn  hen J 

plain.  A  Brown  Leghorn  or  Partridge 
Cochin  male  showing  traces  of  brown  all 
through  the  black  of  his  breast  and  body 
was  likely  to  breed,  when  mated  with  a 
Standard-colored  female  of  his  kind, 
pullets  of  the  correct  shade  and  mark- 
ings; mated  with  darker  females,  he 
might  produce  some  males  with  black 
breast  and  body  and  some  females  of 
his  own  type  and  tendency,  but  results 
were  too  often  disappointing.  Similarly, 

the  finest  males  of  the  approved  color  type  were  found  to  reproduce  that  type 
best  when  mated  with  females  with  the  same  tendency  to  black  body  color. 

1  Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts.  Photographs 
by  Schilling.  The  bird  in  Fig.  516  is  the  daughter  of  the  one  in  Fig.  514 ;  that  in 
Fig.  515  is  the  granddaughter  of  the  one  in  Fig.  516.  The  bird  in  Fig.  517  is  in 
the  same  line  of  breeding,  —  a  very  large  hen,  weighing  6£  pounds,  yet  of  good 
shape  and  style. 


FIG.  517.    Single-Combed  Brown 
Leghorn  hen1 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING 


FIG.  518.  Model  head  of 
Single-Combed  Leghorn 
male  (Brown  Leghorn)1 


It  was  especially  observed  in  breeding  the  Partridge  Cochin,  in  which  the 

Standard  requires  very  distinct  pencilings  in  all  sections  in  the  female,  that 

while  these  pencilings  could  not  be  produced  typically  in  the  male,  and  the  red 
appeared  only  as  a  defect  on  the  black  of  the  breast 
and  body,  the  son  of  a  well-penciled  female,  when 
mated  with  females  of  Standard  type,  would  usually 
produce  daughters  similarly  well  penciled.  On  the 
other  hand,  from  a  female  with  poor  penciling  (colors 
distributed  but  pattern  not  arranged)  a  male  might 
be  produced  (to  all  appearances  like  the  other)  which, 
mated  with  the  same  females,  would  give  daughters 
distinctly  inferior  in  penciling.  Similar  observations 
were  made  in  regard  to  the  production  of  the  desired 
type  of  males.  The  sexes  having  the  same  colors 
in  different  patterns,  the  color  of  a  male  indicated 
only  the  general  shade  or  tone  of  color  of  his 

daughters,  the  color  of  a  female  only  the  general  color  tone  of  her  sons ;   and 

unless  the  breeder  knew  the  details  of  color  of  the  sire  of  a  female  or  the  dam 

of  a  male,  he  could  form  no  idea  of 

what  their  influence  would  be  on 

the  markings  of  their  offspring  of 

the  opposite  sex.     Thus   it  was 

demonstrated   empirically    in    the 

experience  of  many  breeders,  most 

of  whom  were  not  versed  in  the 

science  of  evolution,  that,  in  breed- 
ing poultry  in  which  the  sexes  differ 

in  color,  the  most  important  thing 

to  know  about  a  bird  is  the  color 

of  its  parents. 

For  a  long  time  the  common 

practice  in  mating  Partridge  Co- 
chins and  Brown  Leghorns,  which 

were  the  black-red  varieties  most 

popular  with  fanciers,  was  to  make 

intermediate  matings,  using  a  male 

with  a  slight  tendency  to  a  mixture 

of  red  in  black  sections  with  both 

dark  and  light  females  in  the  same 

pen.    This  sometimes  gives  good 

birds  of  both  sexes,  —  occasionally 

a  large  proportion  of  them  ;  but  it 

is,  at  best,  a  makeshift  method  of 

getting  results,   and  the  breeder 


FIG.  519.    Partridge  Plymouth  Rock  cock- 
erel.   (Photograph  from  owner,  Frank  T. 
Chambers,  Bristol,  Pennsylvania) 


Photograph  from  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards. 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  520.    Partridge  Wyandotte  cock.    (Pho- 
tograph by  Graham) 


who  practices  it  cannot  long  com- 
pete with  one  of  equal  skill  who 
breeds  two  distinct  lines.  It  is  a 
significant  fact  that  special  mat- 
ing for  the  sexes,  though  not 
made  a  regular  system  until  after 
it  had  been  adopted  for  another 
pattern,  was  worked  out  first  with 
fowls  of  the  colors  of  the  natural 
species,  and  as  a  result  of  the 
fancier's  efforts  to  develop  in  each 
sex  the  sexual  color  tendency. 

Mating  modified  black-red 
color  types.  We  have  seen  that 
the  black-red  color  type,  the  same 
in  pattern  in  the  males  of  many 
varieties,  is  modified  in  the  fe- 
males of  all  these  varieties ;  that 
it  may  be  changed  in  the  females 
without  changing  in  the  males; 
that  the  males  will  regularly  trans- 
mit in  their  female  offspring  the 
pattern  peculiar  to  females  of 

their  own  race ;  and  that  the  influence  of  the  female  coloration  on  the  male 
coloration  may  be  very  strong,  developing  a  tendency  to  distribution  of  red 
throughout  the  black,  as  in  the  female. 
By  further  separation  of  the  colors  on 
each  feather  in  the  female  plumage  the 
several  pencilings  may  be  combined  either 
in  a  single  broad  penciling,  or  "  lacing," 
following  the  edge  of  the  feather,  as  in 
the  Golden-Laced  Wyandotte,  or  in  a 
spot,  or  "  spangle,"  near  the  tip  of  the 
feather,  as  in  the  Golden-Spangled  Ham- 
burg, or  in  transverse  bars  crossing  the 
feather,  as  in  the  Golden-Penciled  Ham- 
burg. With  these  types  of  female  color- 
ation may  be  developed  male  types  with 
the  female  markings  in  all  black  sections, 
the  red  sections  remaining  as  before, 
as  in  the  Golden-Laced  Wyandotte,  or 
changed  to  give  on  the  special  male 
feathers  a  distribution  corresponding  to 

that  in  the  general  plumage,  as  in  the      FIG.  521.    Partridge  Wyandotte  hen 
Golden  Polish,  or  with  the  black  in  all  (Photograph  by  Graham) 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     513 


sections  largely  replaced  by  red,  as  in  the  Golden-Penciled  Hamburg,  which  has 
the  breast  of  the  male  (of  the  ground  color  of  the  female  without  pencilings), 
has  black  fluff,  and  has  the  sides  of  the  body  between  the  breast  and  the  fluff 
penciled  as  in  the  general  plumage  of  the  female. 

These  modifications,  especially  in  the  first  two  instances  cited,  are  in  the 
direction  of  making  a  distinct  pattern  common  to  the  male  and  female  of  the 
black-red  color  type.    Theoretically  it  should  be  possible  to  secure  some  modi- 
fication of  this  type,  making  male  and  female  identical  in  color,  which  would 
result  in  regularly  giv- 
ing  typical    males   and 
females    from    matings 
of  standard  specimens. 
Many  breeders  of  Laced 
Wyandottes  assert  that 
this  will  be  the  result,  if 
breeders  will  not  under- 
take to  secure  open  cen- 
ters and  narrow  lacing 
in  both  sexes  too  rapidly, 
and  will  patiently  mate 
birds  with  medium  cen- 
ters and  lacing  until  the 
pattern    is    well    estab- 
lished   in    both    sexes. 
This  view  seems  sound, 
but  not  many  breeders 
are  willing  to  wait  when 
they    can     occasionally 
get   phenomenal    speci- 
mens by  special  matings.       FIG.  522.     Long-Tailed  Japanese  Phoenix  cockerel, 
Though     there     is     no       owned  by  Urban  Farms,  Buffalo,  New  York.    (Photo- 
regular     double-mating  graph  by  Schilling) 
system  in  these  modified 
types,  the  principle  applies  wherever  the  color  tendencies  in  the  sexes  differ. 

Mating  red  and  buff-color  types.  The  red  and  buff  varieties  are  derived 
from  the  black-red  type  by  the  blending  and  reduction  of  the  black  and  red. 
There  is  practically  no  limit  to  the  number  of  shades  produced  by  combinations 
of  their  colors.  Not  only  are  there  all  gradations  of  the  mixture  in  the  general 
color  tone  of  the  plumage  of  birds  of  these  color  types,  but  there  is  always 
some  variation  of  shade  (and  often  a  great  deal  of  it)  in  the  different  sections, 
in  different  feathers,  and  (in  less  degree)  on  the  same  feather.  Of  the  many 
possible  shades  in  this  class  of  colors  only  three  are  recognized  as  Standard : 
golden  buff,  in  all  buff  varieties ;  red,  in  the  Rhode  Island  Red ;  and  dark  red, 
in  the  Buckeye.  While  the  description  thus  rigidly  limits  buff  fowls  to  one 
and  red  fowls  to  two  shades,  it  is  absolutely  impossible  to  secure  uniformity  in 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  523.     Silver-Penciled  Plymouth  Rock 
cock.    (Photograph  by  Graham) 


FIG.  524.    Silver-Penciled  Plymouth 
Rock  hen.   (Photograph  by  Graham) 


varieties  and  flocks,  and  difficult 
to  get  it  in  individuals.  The 
rigidity  of  the  Standard  only 
serves  to  unify  the  ideals  of 
breeders,  and  to  prevent  the 
breaking  up  of  varieties  into 
subvarieties,  as  when  Buff  Co- 
chins were  bred  in  three  color 
subvarieties. 

While  commonly  classed  by 
fanciers  with  black  and  white  as 
a  "  solid  color,"1  and  handicapped 
with  them  in  sweepstakes  com- 
petitions, buff  and  red  shades 
are  the  most  uncertain  of  all  in 
transmission  and  the  most  un- 
stable in  the  individual.  With 
both  red  and  black  present  in 
considerable  amounts,  there  is  a 
constant  tendency  for  these  pig- 
ments to  separate  and  arrange 
themselves  as  in  the  black-red 
type.  The  black  tends  to  go  to 
the  wing  and  tail  feathers,  the 
red  to  the  feathers  of  the  hackle  and 
the  back.  Hardly  more  than  one  bird  in 
a  thousand  in  any  variety  will  meet  the 
Standard  requirement  for  uniformity 
of  surface  color  and  hold  that  color  until 
and  through  the  first  adult  molt.  For 
this  reason  an  old  buff  or  red  bird  that 
is  sound  in  color  is  even  more  valuable 
as  a  breeder  (compared  with  a  similar 
young  bird)  than  an  old  bird  of  other 
color  types. 

The  general  rule  in  mating  buff  and 
red  birds  is  to  use  birds  of  both  sexes 
as  near  the  Standard  shade  of  color  as 
possible  and  uniform  in  color.  The 
second  specification  is  as  important  as 
the  first.  A  bird  that  is  uniform  but  a 
little  lighter  or  darker  than  desirable 
may  not  show  as  well  among  birds  of 
the  stylish  shade  as  one  that,  with  the 


1  Strictly  the  term  describes  the  pattern  rather  than  the  quality  of  the  color. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     515 


FIG.  525.    Silver-Penciled  Wyandotte 
cockerel,  a  nice  type  1 


desired  shade  in  some  sections, 
runs  a  little  off  in  others,  but  it  is 
Irkely  to  give  more  satisfactory  re- 
sults in  breeding.  The  tendency  to 
a  uniform  distribution  of  colors  is 
more  valuable  in  a  breeding  bird 
than  the  correct  shade  of  color  pre- 
vailing in  most  sections  but  lost  in 
one  or  two.  Systematic  breeding 
from  the  birds  nearest  the  desired 
shade  of  color,  offsetting  weakness 
in  color  in  one  sex  by  strength  in 
the  other,  and  applying  the  com- 
pensation principle  section  by  sec- 
tion, when  necessary,  will  keep  a 
stock  of  buff  or  red  birds  very  close 
to  the  Standard  color. 

As  stated  in  the  description  of 
the  breeds,  the  Buff  Wyandottes, 
Plymouth  Rocks,  and  Rhode  Island  Reds  were  at  one  time  of  nearly  the  same 
color.  The  first  Buff  Leghorns  were  mostly  weak  in  color,  with  a  great  deal  of 
white  and  some  black.  At  the  time  when  the  buff  craze  came  on  in  the  early 
nineties,  the  popular  shade  for  Buff  Co- 
chins in  the  East  was  a  very  light  buff, 
in  the  West  a  rather  dark  buff.  This 
difference  continues,  but  in  less  degree. 
The  very  light  birds  favored  in  Eastern 
shows  when  the  Buff  Leghorn  boom  was 
at  its  height  were  so  reduced  in  buff  pig- 
ment that  the  color  began  to  break  up 
and  show  traces  of  white  throughout  the 
plumage.  When  this  stage  was  reached 
it  was  necessary  to  "feed"  the  stock 
some  dark  color  by  using  dark  birds  in 
some  matings.  The  feeding  process  often 
caused  such  lack  of  uniformity  that  the 
breeder's  stock  was  not  found  in  the  show- 
rooms again  for  one  or  two  seasons. 

In  the  darker  shades  of  buff,  fluctua- 
tions still  continue,  but  as  long  as  the 
color  is  strong  enough  to  keep  out  the 

white,  a  variation  of  a  few  shades  is  immaterial.  In  red  fowls  the  tendency 
has  been  constantly  to  a  darker  shade,  many  breeders  going  beyond  red  in 
Rhode  Island  Reds  and  getting  a  large  proportion  of  brown  specimens.  With 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  James  S.  Wason,  Grand  Rapids,  Michigan. 


FIG.  526.  Silver-Penciled  Wyandotte 
pullet.    Good  bird  with  poor  head1 


FIG.  527.  Silver- Laced  Wyandotte  cock- 
erel. This  bird  and  the  one  in  Fig.  528 
are  full  brothers.  The  bird  in  Fig.  528, 
with  the  best-laced  breast,  fails  in  saddle 


FIG.  528.   Silver-Laced  Wyandotte  cock- 
erel.   (Photograph  from  owner,  John  C. 
Jodrey,  Danvers,  Massachusetts) 

1  Photograph  from  owners,  Wood  and 
Freeman,  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts. 

516 


FIG.  529.     Front  view  of    Silver- 
Laced  Wyandotte  pullet1 


FIG.  530.    Side  view    of   bird   in 
Fig.  529 


FIG.  53 1 .  Three-quarters  rear  view 
of  bird  in  Fig.  529 


FIG.  532.   Exhibition  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  cockerel1 


FIG.  534.  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  pul- 
let of  the  Exhibition  male  line.  Re- 
markably well-defined  barring  for  a 
"  cockerel-bred  "  female.  This  pullet 
and  the  male  in  Fig.  532  make  a  model 
mating  for  Standard  males  * 


FIG.  533.  Exhibition  Barred  Plymouth 
Rock  pullet.  This  pullet  and  the 
male  in  Fig.  535  make  a  model  mating 
for  Standard  females.  Many  of  the 
males  from  such  a  mating  will  be 
much  lighter  in  color  than  the  sire1 


FIG.  535.    Barred  Plymouth  Rock  cock- 
erel of  the  Exhibition  female  line l 


1  Owned  by  Grove  Hill  Poultry  Yards,  Waltham,  Massachusetts.    Photograph 
by  Schilling. 

517 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


the  idea  that  the  blending  of  extremes  will  produce  a  mean,  many  have  mated 
these  dark  brown  specimens  to  light  buff  or  salmon  birds.  The  usual  result 
is  a  mottling  of  the  shades  in  the  progeny.  A  light  or  dark  bird  may  be  used 
to  tone  up  or  down  in  the  progeny  the  color  of  a  bird  a  few  shades  lighter 
or  darker  than  itself,  but  extreme  matings  always  produce  variegation. 

While  standards  for  red  fowls  require  or  allow  considerable  black,  the  breeder 
should  always  work  away  from  black  and  endeavor  to  secure  rich  red  through- 
out, for  the  development  of  fanciers'  ideals  and  of  standards  is  always  in  the 

direction  of  uniformity  of  color 
in  a  variety  which  has  no  pro- 
nounced pattern  in  the  plumage. 
Mating  black-white  color  types. 
The  black-white  color  types  pre- 
sent the  same  phenomena  as  the 
black-red,  with  the  red  replaced 
by  white.  Though  red  is  con- 
sidered a  strong  positive  color, 
and  white  merely  absence  of  color, 
the  colors  behave  in  just  the 
same  way  in  the  Dark  Brahma 
as  in  the  Partridge  Cochin,  in 
the  Silver-Laced  as  in  the  Golden- 
Laced  Wyandotte,  in  the  Silver- 
Penciled  as  in  the  Golden-Penciled 
Hamburg.  In  mating  any  of  the 
varieties  with  these  color  combi- 
nations the  breeder  who  finds  it 
difficult  to  get  good  specimens  of 
both  sexes  from  the  same  mating 
must  carefully  study  his  type,  his 
individual  birds,  their  ancestry 
and  their  progeny,  and  determine  how  far  it  is  necessary  to  cater  to  sex  tend- 
encies by  special  matings  to  produce  what  standards  require. 

Mating  the  gray,  or  blue,  barred  pattern.  Barring  in  all  sections  of  both 
sexes  is  in  appearance  one  of  the  simplest  of  color  patterns.  "  Common  look- 
ing "  is  a  phrase  often  applied  to  the  finest  Barred  Plymouth  Rocks  by  people 
who  do  not  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  produce  fine  finish  in  this  pattern,  and 
do  not  appreciate  the  results.  The  pattern  seems  to  have  been  comparatively 
crude  in  all  varieties  in  which  it  was  found,  until  the  keen  competition  of  Barred 
Plymouth  Rock  breeders  brought  it  to  a  high  state  of  perfection.  The  fancier's 
attitude  toward  sexual  differences  in  color  in  this  variety  is  just  the  opposite  of 
his  attitude  toward  such  differences  in  pronounced  black-red  color  types.  In 
the  Brown  Leghorn  and  varieties  similar  in  color  he  cultivates  the  sexual  tend- 
ency to  differences  in  color;  in  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  he  cultivates  the 
opposing  race  tendency  to  similarity  in  color  and  markings.  The  result  is 


FIG.  536.  Typical  American  Dominique  cock 

(Photograph    from    owner,     A.  Q.  Carter, 

Freeport,  Maine) 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     519 


secured  in  both  cases  by  the 
application  of  the  same  prin- 
ciple   of     special     mating,  — 
breeding    not    the    Standard- 
colored  bird  of  either  sex  to 
a  mate  of  the  other  sex  of  the 
same  shade  of  color,  but  the 
male  to  a  female  of  the  color 
and  breeding  of  his  dam,  and 
the  female  to  a  male  of  the 
color  and  breeding  of  her  sire. 
There  is,  however,  this  differ- 
ence in  the  cases  compared: 
when    sexual    differences    in 
color    are    exaggerated    by  a 
standard,    the    application    of 
the  principle  keeps  apart  the 
lines  of  breeding,  or  subvari- 
eties.    When  a  standard  seeks 
to  make  the  sex  color  types 
identical,  the  application  of  the 
principle    of    special    matings 
tends  first  to  fix  the  types  and 
finally  to  fuse  the  lines.    Allu- 
sion was  made  to  this  in  the 
paragraph  relating  to  modified 
black-red  types.  Nowhere 
is  the  evidence  of  prog- 
ress toward  fusion  of  sex 
varieties    as    marked    as 
in  the   evolution   of   the 
Barred   Plymouth   Rock.. 
From  within  a  few  years 
after    they    were    estab- 
lished, the  two  lines  have 
been  steadily  converging. 
The    dark    females   with 
indistinct    barring,    once 
used  in  the  male  line,  and 
the    nearly    white    males 
with  just  a  suggestion  of 
barring,  once  used  in  the 
female    line,    are    rarely 
seen  now.    Crosses  of  the 
two  lines  are  occasionally 


FIG.  537.    Light  Brahma  cockerel,  owned  by 
H.  B.  Robinson,  Reading,  Massachusetts 


FIG.  538.    Same  as  Fig.  537.   Note  how  the  pose 
changes  the  apparent  shape 


520  POULTRY  CULTURE 

made  by  skillful  breeders  with  good  results.  The  barring  is  becoming  narrower 
and  more  distinct,  and  the  general  color  tone  darker.  It  seems  plain  that  a 
time  will  come  when  the  two  lines  of  the  Barred  Rock  will  be  one,  but  how 
soon  no  one  can  say.  At  the  present  stage  of  their  development  they  are 
satisfactorily  fused  only  by  breeders  of  great  skill,  thoroughly  familiar  with 
the  breeding  of  both  lines  of  stock  used,  and  by  them  only  occasionally.  Nor 
is  the  result  at  this  stage  to  start  a  new  line  on  the  single-mating  system ;  it 
simply  starts  a  new  family  on  one  of  the  old  lines. 

While  the  Standard  specifies  that  bars  shall  be  straight  across  the  feather, 
uniform  in  width,  distinct,  and  free  from  any  brownish  or  greenish  tinge,  such 
perfection  of  color  and  pattern  appears  in  only  a  small  proportion  of  specimens. 
The  bars  on  many  birds  still  tend  to  the  crescentic  form  once  prevalent  even 

in  well-bred  stock.  A  common  fault  in 
barring  is  the  breaking  of  the  bar  as  it 
crosses  the  shaft  of  the  feather,  the  part  in 
each  web  being  straight  but  not  matching 
at  the  quill.  In  the  flight  feathers  of  the 
wings  good  clear  barring  is  comparatively 
rare,  the  bars  presenting  more  of  the  un- 
even appearance  described  as  "  marbled." 
The  brown  and  green  tinges  in  the  dark 
bars,  often  seen  in  both  males  and  females, 
give  the  surface  color  a  muddy,  dirty  look. 
FIG.  539.  Showing  remarkable  Both  are  likely  to  be  most  conspicuous  on 
wing  of  Columbian  Wyandotte  the  backs  of  males  but  appear  in  all  sec- 
pullet  in  Fig.  421 l  tions.  All  these  faults  should  be  carefully 
avoided  in  selecting  breeders.  A  pair  free 

from  them  is  worth  more  to  the  breeder  than  any  number  of  birds  in  which 
they  are  prevalent.  Feathers  wholly  or  partly  black  are  found  in  varying 
numbers  in  nearly  all  barred  fowls.  Unless  they  are  large  or  conspicuously 
abundant,  a  good  bird  should  not  be  discarded  for  them.  It  is  practically  im- 
possible to  breed  them  out  entirely. 

The  color  of  the  beak  and  shanks  in  the  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  male  is 
usually  of  the  yellow  demanded  by  the  Standard.  In  the  Standard  female  a 
perfectly  clean  yellow  beak  and  leg  is  rare.  The  Standard  allows  a  little  dark 
stripe  on  the  beak.  Nearly  all  pullets  show  some  dark  spots  on  the  shanks 
after  they  begin  to  lay,  if  not  earlier.  The  females  of  the  male  line  have 
quite  darkly  shaded  beaks  and  legs. 

Mating  the  ermine  2  color  type.  White  with  black  points  —  that  is,  black 
on  neck,  wings,  and  tail  —  is  the  color  of  the  Light  Brahma,  Columbian 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  Sunny  Brook  Farm,  West  Orange,  New  Jersey. 

2  A  variety  called  the  Erminette,  white  with  black  spots  in  the  plumage,  the 
converse  of  the  Houdan,  was  at  one  time  bred  in  America,  and  there  may  still 
be  some  in  existence.    As  long  as  the  Light  Brahma  was  the  only  distinct  variety 
bred  white  with  black  points,  the  term  "  light,"  describing  the  bird  as  light  in  color 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     521 


Wyandotte,  Columbian  Plymouth 
Rock,  and,  in  more  crude  form, 
of  the  less  popular  Lakenvelder. 
This  color  pattern  appears  as  the 
elimination  of  black  from  the 
surface  of  the  body  plumage  of 
a  silver-laced  or  silver-penciled 
type,  leaving  the  bird  white  with 
black  in  the  wing  flights  and  tail 
and  a  black  stripe  in  the  hackle. 
As  has  been  stated,  the  Light  and 
Dark  varieties  of  the  Brahma 
were  not  clearly  differentiated 
when  brought  from  China.  The 
early  Light  Brahmas  showed  a 
great  deal  of  black  or  gray  on 
the  back,  breast,  and  body.  For 
many  years  the  ideal  of  Light 
Brahma  breeders  was  a  white 
fowl  with  neck-hackle  cleanly 
striped  with  black;  tail  black, 

tail  coverts  black  with  clean  edge  or  lacing  of  white ;  wing  black  or  nearly  black 

in  the  flights,  with  one  web  black  in 

the  secondaries,  but  no  black  show- 
ing when  the  wing  is  folded.  A  little 

black  ticking  in  the  saddle  near  the 

tail  was  tolerated  in  an  Exhibition 

male  and  considered  desirable  in  a 

male  for  breeding.  Recently,  a  darker 

type  of  Light  Brahma  has  sometimes 

been  given  preference.   In  this  type 

males  have  very  heavy  striping  in 

the  hackle,  and  have  the  striping  in 

the  saddle  extending  well  up  to  the 

cape,  making  the  back  almost  the 

same  as  in  Dark  Brahma  and  Silver 

Wyandotte  males.  This  corresponds 

with  the  popular  type  of  Columbian 

Wyandotte.  Whether  this  type  will 


FIG.  540.    Model  Single-Combed  White 
Leghorn  cockerel1 


FIG.  541.    Model   Single-Combed  White 
Leghorn  pullet1 


but  not  white,  was  adequate.  With  the  appearance  of  Wyandottes  and  Plymouth 
Rocks  of  the  same  color  type,  "light"  no  longer  answers  for  a  general  description 
of  the  color,  while  the  name  "Columbian"  has  no  appropriateness  whatever. 
Every  other  variety  of  these  breeds  having  a  name  descriptive  of  its  color,  the 
appropriate  names  for  these  are  Ermine  Wyandotte  and  Ermine  Plymouth  Rock. 
1  Photograph  from  owner,  Harmon  Bradshaw,  Lebanon,  Indiana. 


522 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  542.  Single-Combed  White  Leghorn  cockerel 


continue  popular  is  uncertain. 
Extensive  black  striping  in 
white  backs  cannot  be  se- 
cured without  more  black 
than  is  desirable  in  other 
white  sections.  The  general 
tendency  in  the  development 
of  color  patterns  in  fowls  is 
to  clean  color  in  sections 
where  there  is  no  definite 
pattern.  For  these  reasons 
it  is  most  probable  that  there 
will  be  a  gradual  return  to 
the  older  type.  The  Colum- 
bian Wyandottes,  during  the 
decade  after  their  introduc- 
tion, in  which  they  were  bred 
by  only  a  few  breeders,  were 
very  poor  in  color,  the  white 
brassy,  and  the  black  very 
weak.  After  they  became 


popular,  crosses  with  both  Light  Brahmas  and  Silver- 
Penciled  Wyandottes  were  made  to  strengthen  the 
black  color.  The  variety  was  largely  in  the  hands  of 
breeders  not  familiar  with  the  behavior  of  the  colors 

in  the  pattern. 
Most  of  them 
were  insistent 
for  black  wings 
(nights)  and  for 
strong  striping 
in  the  hackle 
and  saddles  of 
males, — points 
which  cannot 

be  regularly  obtained  without  bringing 
out  a  great  deal  of  black  elsewhere, 
particularly  in  the  backs  of  the  females, 
where  it  appears  as  mossiness. 

The  most  reliable  method  of  mating 
this  color  pattern  to  secure  clean  white 
surface  and  strong  black  points  is  to 
use  males  with  a  white  edging  on  the 
lower  web  of  each  flight,  with  clean, 


FIG.  543.  Head  of  Rose- 

CombedWhite  Leghorn 

cockerel1 


FIG.  544. 


Rose-Combed  White  Leg- 
horn pullet1 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  Turtle  Point  Farm,  Saratoga,  New  York. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     523 


FIG.  545.    Single-Combed  White  Leghorn  cock1 


sharply  defined  striping  in 
the  hackle,  a  little  ticking 
(but  not  pronounced  strip- 
ing) in  the  saddle,  tail  coverts 
with  clean  white  lacings,  the 
surface  black  in  every  sec- 
tion jet  black,  and  the  sur- 
face white  a  clean  white; 
the  females  should  not  be 
quite  so  strong  in  color. 
Females  with  black  or  nearly 
black  wings  will  usually  show 
poor  striping  in  the  hackle, 
the  black  stripe  too  wide 
(breaking  the  white  edge  at 
the  tip  of  the  feather),  and 
the  white  margin  flecked 
with  black  (smutty).  It  is 
better  to  select  both  males 
and  females  first  for  good 
striping  in  the  hackle,  and 

not  reject  for  white  in  the  flights  unless  it  is  excessive.    In  general  there  is  a 

degree  of  correlation  in  black 

sections  (a  weak  wing  accom- 
panying weakness  of  color  in 

the  main  tail  feathers  and  in 

the  hackle),  but  this  is  not 

regular. 

To  produce  the  now  fash- 
ionable darker  type,  without 

white  in  the  upper  webs  of 

flight  feathers  and  with  strong 

striping    in    the    saddles  of 

the  males,  selection  must  be 

made  for  these  points,  with 

(at  present)  some  sacrifice  in 

cleanness  of   surface  white. 

Whether  it  is  possible  ulti- 
mately to  produce  the  color 

pattern  with  striping  on  the 

backs   of    males    and    clean 

white  surface  on  the  backs  of 

females  is   debatable  —  and 

doubtful.   Such  specifications 


FIG.  546.    Single-Combed  White  Leghorn 
cockerel,  extra  good  breast l 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  Elm  Poultry  Yards,  Hartford,  Connecticut. 


FIG.  548.  White  Langshan  hen. 
This  hen  and  the  cock  in  Fig.  547 
are  shown  in  different  positions 
on  page  391.  Good  type,  except 
back  is  a  trifle  short.  In  the  male 
it  should  form  a  U  not  a  V  l 


FIG.  547.   White  Langshan  cock1 


FIG.  549.  Black  Langshan  pullet 
This  bird  and  the  cockerel  in 
Fig.  550  are  in  type  intermediate 
between  that  shown  on  page  390 
and  the  English  Exhibition  type  * 


FIG.  550.    Black  Langshan  cockerel1 

1  Photograph  from  owner,  Paul  P.  Ives,  Guilford,  Connecticut. 
524 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     525 


are  inconsistent.  If  followed,  they  lead  to  a  double-mating  system  and  to  the 
development  of  male  and  female  lines  as  subvarieties. 

Mating  white  fowls.  The  novice  usually  assumes  that  white  birds  must  be 
easy  to  breed,  for  (as  he  supposes)  they  have  no  color.  The  fancier  of  white 
fowls  soon  finds  that  it  is  as  difficult  to  produce  an  absolutely  white  bird  as  to 
produce  a  party-colored  bird  perfect  in  all  sections,  and  particularly  difficult  to 
produce  the  combination,  now  required  by  the  American  Standard,  of  dead- 
white  plumage  and  yellow  legs,  beak,  and  skin.  Most  of  the  birds  of  this 
description  seen  in  the 
shows  are  washed  to  re- 
move from  the  feathers 
the  oil  which  gives  them 
a  creamy  tint,  and  some 
are  bleached  to  remove 
the  more  objectionable 
brassiness  prevalent  in 
new  white  varieties  and 
in  carelessly  bred  stock. 
"  White  "  as  a  description 
of  a  color  of  poultry  is  al- 
ways relative ;  birds  that 
have  positive  white  where 
they  are  white,  and  no 
trace  whatever  of  other 
color,  are  not  known  to 
poultrymen.  In  the  col- 
ored varieties  of  poultry 
we  find  everywhere  the 
principal  effects  due  to  FIG.  551.  Single-Combed  Black  Minorca  cock.  (Pho- 
varying  intensities  and  tograph  from  owner,  Arthur  Trethaway,  Wilkes- 
combinations  of  black  and  Barre,  Pennsylvania) 

red.    In  the  whitest  fowls 

traces  of  one  or  another  of  these  colors  are  always  present,1  sometimes  toning 
the  white  throughout,  sometimes  appearing  as  splashes  or  ticks  of  red  or  black. 
It  has  long  been  observed  by  fanciers  that  the  whitest  birds  are  most  likely  to 
have  black  ticking  in  the  web  of  the  feathers  (sometimes  a  great  deal  of  it),  while 
those  free  from  black  ticking  are  likely  to  be  creamy,  that  is,  have  a  trace  of 
red.  Apparently,  the  small  residue  of  color  left  after  the  elimination  of  color 
has  been  carried  as  far  as  possible  will  be,  as  a  rule,  of  one  color  or  the  other, 
—  red  or  black,  not  both ;  and  apparently,  a  residue  of  red  tends  to  distribute 
itself  throughout  the  plumage  and  a  residue  of  black  to  appear  in  specks  or 

1  To  the  novice  not  trained  to  consider  colors  in  poultry  critically,  such  state- 
ments always  seem  absurd.  He  supposes  that  he  has  seen  hundreds  or  thousands 
of  domesticated  fowls  that  are  absolutely  white.  His  awakening  comes  when  he 
exhibits  a  bird  that  he  supposes  is  white. 


526 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  552.    Rose-Combed  Black  Minorca  cock1 


ticking.  This  is  the  case 
where  the  color  is  re- 
duced to  the  minimum. 
With  more  color  pres- 
ent, splotches  of  red, 
and  red  feathers,  as  well 
as  black,  will  appear. 

In  considering  color, 
in  white  birds  it  is  nec- 
essary to  distinguish 
between  the  creaminess 
due  to  superabundance 
of  oil  (fat)  in  the  growing 
feather,  and  the  creami- 
ness due  to  the  distri- 
bution of  red.  The 
former  tends  to  dis- 
appear as  the  feathers 
mature,  and  may  be  re- 
moved by  washing ;  the 
latter  cannot  be  removed 
without  damage  to  the 
feather.  It  appears  as 

creaminess  when  little  red  is  present ;  as  the  red  increases,  it  becomes  straw- 
colored,  and  the  bird  is  said  to  be  "brassy."  Brassiness  is  always  most 
pronounced  on  males  and  in  the 
sections  which  are  red  in  black- 
red  fowls.  Usually  it  is  of  a  dis- 
tinctly yellow  cast,  rather  glossy, 
and  appears  to  be  on  the  surface 
rather  than  in  the  substance  of 
the  feather ;  but  sometimes  it  is 
dull  and  seems  to  permeate  the 
web  where  it  appears,  and  in 
such  cases  it  is  likely  to  be  found 
in  both  sexes  and  in  all  sections. 
Sometimes  the  red  appears  as  a 
faint  bricky  (in  some  lights,  rosy) 
tint  in  the  white,  probably  due  to 
the  combination  of  minute  par- 
ticles of  red  and  black. 

The  faults  of  white  plumage 

are  always  plain  in  stock  not  bred 

.  .        J         . .    .  FIG.  CC7.  Rose-Combed  Black  Minorca  hen1 

with  care  to  eliminate  them,  and 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  G.  A.  Clark,  Seymour,  Indiana, 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     527 


FIG.  554.    Rose-Combed  Black  Minorca  cock- 
erel.   Undeveloped  form  of  Fig.  552  1 


are  never  wholly  absent  in  the 
best-bred  stock.  When  serious, 
they  cannot  be  got  rid  of  by 
any  quick  method.  In  stock 
in  which  brassiness  is  bad  no 
improvement  of  consequence 
can  be  made  by  mating  with 
good  white  stock.  Because 
brassiness  may  not  appear  in 
females,  a  breeder  often  sup- 
poses that  it  does  not  exist  in 
them,  and  uses  them  with 
white  males.  Almost  invariably 
the  result  is  brassy  males  in 
the  offspring.  It  is  just  as 
necessary  to  know  that  the  sire 
of  an  apparently  very  white 
hen  was  free  from  brassiness 
as  to  know  the  breeding  of  the 
sire  of  a  black-red  female.  In 
White  Plymouth  Rock  males 

close  inspection  often  shows  a  suggestion  of  black  barring,  especially  in  the 

hackle,  and  sometimes  the  tips  of  hackle  feathers  are  plainly  tipped  with  gray. 

The  whitest  plumage  is  secured  only  by  long-continued  selection  of  the  whitest 

birds.    In  the  present  state  of  development  of  white  breeds  no  one  who  breeds 

for  exhibition  can  afford  to  waste 

time  with  birds  in  which  brassiness 

is  conspicuous.    Those  who  breed 

white  poultry  for  utility  purposes 

need  not  be  so  careful,  but  males 

that  are  badly  brassy  should  never 

be  used. 

Mating  black  fowls.     It   is  as 

rare  for  a  black  fowl  to  be  dead 

black    as   it   is   for    a   white    fowl 

to  be  pure  white.    Ordinary  black 

fowls    are    a    rusty    black    or    a 

brown    black,    usually   with    white 

appearing  as  gray  in  various  parts 

of    the   plumage,    oftenest   in   the 

wing  flights,  in  the  concealed  tail 

feathers,    and    in    the    undercolor. 

Even  in  good  black  fowls  red  is 


usually    present,    either   visible   or 


FIG.  555.    Rose-Combed  Black  Minorca 
pullet.   Undeveloped  form  of  Fig.  553  l 


Photograph  from  owner,  G.  A.  Clark,  Seymour,  Indiana. 


528 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  556.    Single-Combed  Rhode  Island 
Red   cock.     (Photograph  from  owner, 
Frank   D.  Read,    Bridgewater,   Massa- 
chusetts) 


latent,  and  the  black  is  never  abso- 
lutely free  from  white.1 

Black  stock  that  has  not  been  very 
carefully  bred  for  color  is  usually  a 
brown  black.  Breeding  from  the 
blackest  of  such  brown-black  birds 
develops  the  Standard  jet  black  with 
the  green  surface,  sheen,  and  brown 
casts  eliminated.  After  this  stage  of 
development  has  been  reached  it 
becomes  necessary  to  check  the  in- 
tensification of  black  by  breeding 
with  a  Standard  bird  of  one  sex  a 
mate  of  the  other  in  which  the  black 
is  dull  yet  free  from  pronounced 
rustiness.  If  two  jet-black  birds  are 
mated,  further  intensification  of  the 
black  seems  to  bring  it  to  disinte- 
gration, and  brings  out  purple  bar- 
ring, which  is  a  most  objectionable 
character.  The  occurrence  of  white 


FIG.  557.    Single-Combed  Rhode 
Island  Red  pullet 


FIG.  558.    Single-Combed  Rhode 
Island  Red  hen2 


1  Some  of  the  most  careful  breeders  and  expert  exhibitors  of  black  fowls  say 
that  white  can  always  be  found  in  a  black  fowl  if  the  examination  is  thorough.  A 
breeder  of  Black  Leghorns  and  judge  of  many  black  varieties,  who  had  had  over 
twenty  years'  experience  with  them,  once  told  me  that  no  matter  how  carefully  a 
black  fowl  was  examined  for  white,  and  faulty  feathers  removed,  he  could  always 
go  back  and  find  another.  2  photograph  from  owner,  Frank  D.  Read. 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     529 


FIG.  559.   Single-Combed  Buff  Orpington  cock 

(Photograph  from  owner,  Miss  Henrietta  E. 

Hooker,  South  Hadley,  Massachusetts) 


FIG.  560.  Single-Combed  Buff  Or- 
pington hen.  (Photograph  from 
owner,  Miss  H.  E.  Hooker.)  This 
female  and  the  male  in  Fig.  559 
show  a  type  halfway  between  the 
Plymouth  Rock  and  the  Cochin 


FIG.  561.    Buff  Cochin  pullet 
1  Owned  by  Thomas  Peer,  Fairfield,  New  Jersey.    Photograph  by  Graham. 


FIG.  562.    Stylish  Single-Combed  Buff 
Leghorn  cock l 


530 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


FIG.  563.    Single-Combed  Buff  Leghorn 
hen ;  a  nice  specimen l 


in  black  fowls  and  in  black  plumage 
in  all  fowls  is  often  due  to  poor  con- 
dition when  the  plumage  is  growing, 
—  a  point  to  be  considered  with  due 
allowance  when  birds  are  being  se- 
lected for  breeders.  The  fault  is 
most  conspicuous  and  most  serious 
when  it  appears  in  the  flight  feathers 
of  the  wings.  If  found  here  in  con- 
siderable amount  in  birds  of  a  stock 
which  has  been  quite  free  from  it, 
the  presumption  is  always  that  the 
bird  was  a  little  out  of  condition 
(perhaps  lousy)  when  the  feathers 
were  growing,  and  that,  if  in  good 
condition  at  the  breeding  season,  it 
is  likely  to  produce  offspring  that 
under  good  growing  conditions  will 
be  as  free  from  the  fault  as  its  ancestry.  A  breeder  working  with  stock  that 
he  does  not  know  may,  for  once,  give  to  a  bird  with  too  much  white  the 
benefit  of  the  doubt.  Then  if  the  fault  seems  racial,  he  should  secure  birds 
free  from  it  to  breed  with  his  stock,  or  perhaps  get  altogether  new  stock. 

Undercolor.  In  all  the  pre- 
ceding discussions  of  selection' 
for  color,  surface  color  only  has 
been  considered.  Undercolor, 
the  color  of  that  part  of  the 
soft  feathers  which  does  not 
show  as  they  lie  in  natural  posi- 
tion, is  of  nearly  equal  impor- 
tance. Defective  undercolor  is 
a  much  more  serious  matter  in 
a  breeding  bird  than  in  an  ex- 
hibition bird,  though  even  in 
the  latter  it  is  a  serious  fault. 
Standard  specifications  as  to 
undercolor  are  in  many  in- 
stances lacking,  and  rarely  give 
the  breeder  a  clue  to  the  weak 
places  in  undercolor. 

In  all  black-red  types  the 
prevailing  tone  of  the  under- 
color is  slate,  that  is,  there  is  white  distributed  quite  evenly  through   the 
undercolor  that  does  not  appear  (or  is  desired  not  to  appear)  on  the  surface. 
1  Photograph  from  owner,  Monmouth  Poultry  Farm,  Freneau,  New  Jersey. 


FIG.  564.    Single-Combed  Buff  Leghorn  cock1 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     531 


FIG.  565.    Single-Combed  Buff  Leghorn 
pullet,  very  sound  color1 


This  white  often  appears  as  white 
at  the  base  of  the  feathers  next  the 
skin  all  over  the  bird.  The  amount 
of  white  may  be  small  or  it  may  be 
considerable.  There  are  two  places 
on  the  fowl  where  this  white  tends 
especially  to  crop  out,  the  tendency 
being  particularly  strong  in  the 
male,  —  at  the  base  of  the  tail  and 
on  the  back  of  the  neck,  in  the 
hackle.  In  poorly  bred  males  of 
this  color  type  white  at  the  base  of 
the  tail  is  conspicuous  and  may 
extend  for,  some  distance  on  the 
main  tail  feathers.  It  is  hard  to 
eliminate  entirely  even  in  well-bred 
birds.  It  is  more  noticeable  in 
Games  and  Brown  Leghorns  than 

in  Cochins,  Wyandottes,  and  Plymouth  Rocks,  because  the  tail  is  larger  and 

the  saddle  feathers  are  less  profuse.  The  white  in  the  neck,  unless  very  bad, 

does  not  show  on  the  surface.    If  present,  it  may  be  found  by  parting  the 

feathers  of  the  hackle,  or  cape. 

Sometimes  it  is  there  for  one 

third  or  one  half  the  length  of 

the  feathers  when  no  sign  of 

it  is  seen  on  the  surface. 

In  the  individual  bird  such 

defects,  if  not  conspicuous  on 

the  surface,  are  not  of  great 

importance,  but  as  they  occur 

in  most  pronounced  form  in 

the  males,  and  a  female  show- 
ing them  slightly  or  not  at  all 

may  be  the  daughter  of  a  male 

in  which  they  were  very  bad, 

unless  the  breeder  is  sure  of 

his  females  it  is  doubly  nec- 
essary   that   he   should   avoid 

breeding     from     males     with 

such  faults. 

In  the  modified  black-red 

types  the  tendency  is  to  lighter 

undercolor.    As  long  as  white  does  not  break  out,  some  diminution  of  the 

intensity  of  the  slate  color  is  not  objectionable. 


FIG.  566.    Single-Combed  Buff  Leghorn  cock- 
erel ;  shy,  and  would  not  pose  to  show  style  J 


1  Photograph  from  owner,  Monmouth  Poultry  Farm,  Freneau,  New  Jersey. 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


In  the  dark-red 
types,  with  black  in 
the  wings  and  tail,  the 
undercolor  is  usually 
red  with  more  or  less 
slate,  the  slate,  when 
present,  appearing  as  a 
bar  next  the  surface. 
If  black  points  are  re- 
quired or  allowed,  a 
moderate  amount  of 
slate  in  undercolor  is 
not  objectionable,  but 
care  must  be  taken  to 
avoid  repeated  matings 
of  birds  with  much 
slate,  for  the  tendency 
of  such  matings  is  to 
bring  out  black  specks, 
and  sometimes  indis- 
tinct pencilings,  on  the 
surface. 

In  buff  birds,   and 
in  red  birds  in  which 

it  is  desired  to  reduce  the  black  as  much  as  possible,  slate  in  undercolor  should 

be  scrupulously  avoided,  and 

selection    made   for    under- 
color as  near  the  surface  color 

as  possible.    The  strongest 

buff  and  red  undercolor ,  is 

always  a  little  lighter  than 

the  surface  color,  but  strong 

surface  color  is  often  found 

with  weak  undercolor.     In 

these  colors,  if  surface  and 

undercolor  are  very  nearly 

the    same    shade    and    the 

former  somewhat  faded  and 

mottled  by  exposure,  a  bird 

may  appear  to   have  good 

undercolor  and  poor  surface, 

and  in  such  cases  the  under- 
color  may   afford   a   better 

index  of  the  breeding  char-      FlG.  s68.   Old  Rouen  duck5  owned  by  Howard  B. 

acter  of  the  bird  than  the  Robinson,  Reading,  Massachusetts 


FIG.  567.   Young  Rouen  drake,  owned  by  Howard  B. 
Robinson,  Reading,  Massachusetts 


APPLICATION  OF  PRINCIPLES  OF  BREEDING     533 


FIG.  569.   Black  Sumatra  Game  cock.   (Photo- 
graph by  Graham) 


surface  color.  Buff  and  red 
varieties  are  especially  prone 
to  white  in  the  hackles  of  the 
males,  and  the  breeder  of  these 
varieties  should  always  look 
for  it  there. 

In  the  black-white  type  and 
its  modifications,  and  to  a  less 
extent  in  black  varieties,  the 
white  faults  in  undercolor  ap- 
pear. In  most  black  varieties 
the  undercolor  is  a  very  dark 
slate,  but  is  sometimes  a  dull, 
or  brown,  black.  In  the  black- 
white  or  gray  color  types  white 
is  necessarily  somewhat  prev- 
alent in  undercolor,  but  with 
so  much  white  in  the  surface 
its  presence  is  often  overlooked 
until  neglect  of  it  leads  to  weak- 
ening of  the  surface  color.  The 
breeder  has  always  to  guard 


against  the  troublesome  white  in  the  hackle  and  at  the  base  of  the  tail.  Where 
white  and  black  are  mixed,  he  detects  it  in  the  weakening  of  black.  If  he  fails 
to  notice  that  the  black  stripe  in  a  hackle  is  broken  across  with  white  just 
under  the  surface,  he  soon  finds  chickens  developing  with  weak  striping  on  the 
surface.  If  he  overlooks  a  little  white 
at  the  base  of  the  main  tail  feathers 
and  sickles,  he  soon  finds  white  ex- 
tending farther  out  on  these  feathers. 

In  the  ermine  types,  as  in  the  red 
with  black  points,  a  light  slate  under- 
color, or  a  slate  bar  just  under  the 
surface,  is  favored  by  many  breeders  ; 
and,  as  a  rule,  more  or  less  black  is 
found  in  the  undercolor  of  birds  of 
this  type  which  have  good  black  points. 

In  gray-barred  fowls  strong,  clear 
barring  on  the  surface  is  preserved 
only  by  careful  selection  for  barring 
in  undercolor.  It  is  not  necessary  that 
the  barring  in  undercolor  be  as  clear 
and  the  dark  color  as  strong  as  in 
the  surface  color.  Some  breeders  of  FlG.  5?o.  Black  Sumatra  Game  hen 
Barred  Plymouth  Rocks  tried  for  a  (Photograph  by 'Graham) 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

while  to  develop  it  that  way,  but  as  the  natural  tendency  is  to  darker  color  on 
the  surface  than  in  undercolor,  the  result  was  to  increase  the  black  in  the 
surface  color  and  make  the  birds  too  dark.  Strong  barring  in  undercolor  is 
still  a  fad  with  many  breeders.  Others  require  only  that  the  bars  be  quite 
distinct  for  the  greater  part  of  the  length  of  the  feather,  and  apparent,  though 
not  sharply  defined,  down  to  the  skin.  If  barring  in  undercolor  is  neglected 
in  selecting  breeders,  surface  bars  soon  become  indistinct,  and  white  appears 
in  considerable  amounts  in  the  tail  and  neck. 

In  white  fowls  the  undercolor  is  often  the  most  reliable  index  of  the  quality 
of  surface  color.  Exposure  to  rain  and  sun  may  burn  or  stain  the  surface  of  a 
good  white  bird  so  that  it  will  look  like  a  poor  one.  If  the  bird  is  white,  the 
undercolor,  and  especially  the  quills,  will  be  free  from  yellow  in  ripe  plumage. 

In  a  very  literal  sense,  undercolor  in  all  birds  with  strong  color  is  reserve 
color.  Unless  intensified  by  mating  and  mixture  with  a  color  as  strong  as  or 
stronger  than  itself,  the  tendency  in  all  plumage  colors  is  to  grow  weaker. 
There  is  also  a  tendency  for  color,  if  present,  to  come  to  the  surface.  If  all  the 
color  is  at  the  surface,  as  it  is  in  some  buff  and  gray  birds,  a  very  slight  loss 
of  color  will  cause  marked  deterioration  in  surface  color. 

Color  selection  of  Rouen  Ducks.  The  Rouen  Duck  is  the  only  variety  of 
poultry,  other  than  fowls,  requiring  special  discussion  of  color.  In  all  others 
single  Standard  matings  are  the  rule.  In  the  Rouen  Duck,  as  in  the  black-red 
color  type  in  fowls,  the  colors  of  the  wild  bird  are  intensified  in  domestication, 
and  sex  differences  in  color  are  developed.  Were  the  variety  bred  more  exten- 
sively for  exhibition,  the  double-mating  system  would  probably  be  used  regu- 
larly. As  it  is,  it  is  used  to  some  extent,  and  when  special  separate  matings  are 
not  used  to  produce  exhibition  birds  of  the  different  sexes,  intermediate  matings 
are  used. 

The  American  Standard  Rouen  drake  is  a  light-colored  Rouen  drake,  the 
Standard  Rouen  duck  a  dark-colored  Rouen  duck.  The  Standard  duck  is  quite 
similar  to  the  Partridge  Cochin  hen  in  color  and  pattern,  not  so  rich  in  color 
or  so  well  and  uniformly  marked,  but  still  strongly  suggestive  of  this  Cochin 
variety.  The  drake  which  matches  this  duck  in  breeding  is  very  dark  and 
without  the  white  ring  around  the  neck  so  conspicuous  in  the  exhibition  drake. 
The  duck  which  in  breeding  matches  the  Standard  drake  is  very  much  lighter 
in  color  than  the  Standard  duck,  indistinctly  penciled,  and  has  a  white  ring 
indicated  around  the  neck.  When  only  one  pen  is  bred  it  is  usual  to  mate  a 
medium  male  with  females  of  both  types.  This  gives  a  proportion  of  good 
Standard  birds  of  both  sexes,  but  not  so  many  as  when  typical  drakes  are 
used  in  separate  matings. 


PART  IV.    THE  POULTRY  FANCY 

CHAPTER  XXVII 

POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS 

Primary  poultry  exhibitions.  The  beginnings  of  poultry  exhibi- 
tions are  to  be  found  in  England  and  Scotland  in  little  gatherings 
of  poultry  fanciers  in  taverns,  and  in  America  in  small  exhibits 
of  poultry  at  agricultural  fairs.  It  is  altogether  probable  that  in  all 
countries  where  any  degree  of  attention  has  been  given  to  the 
development  of  special  types,  the  bringing  of  fowls  to  semisocial 
evening  gatherings  of  persons  interested  in  them  has  been  for 
centuries  an  irregular  custom,  but  we  have  definite  information  only 
of  those  in  Britain,  in  which  some  of  the  veteran  American  fanciers 
of  British  birth  took  part.  In  America — so  far  as  is  known — this 
type  of  informal  private  show  was  not  developed  until  after  public 
exhibitions  became  somewhat  general.  Since  then  it  has  been  an 
occasional  feature  in  meetings  of  local  poultry  associations.  Ex- 
hibits of  poultry  were  made  at  agricultural  fairs  in  Massachusetts 
at  least  two  years  before  the  first  special  poultry  exhibition  at  Bos- 
ton in  1849.  It  is  quite  possible  that  poultry  was  shown  at  earlier 
fairs  both  in  Massachusetts  and  other  eastern  states. 

The  early  informal  evening  exhibits  brought  together  some  of 
the  fancy  fowls  of  a  locality.  The  early  exhibits  at  the  fairs  were 
more  in  the  practical  line,  representing  the  best  poultry  found  on 
farms.  At  these  early  agricultural  poultry  exhibits  the  exhibitor  was 
expected  to  furnish  a  written  statement  describing  his  stock  and 
giving  an  itemized  list  of  his  expenses  for  and  receipts  from  his 
poultry  for  a  year  preceding.  Both  the  poultry  and  the  report  were 
considered  in  awarding  premiums,  or  bounties,  as  they  were  then 
called,  from  the  fact  that  the  prize  money  was  paid  by  the  state.1 

1  The  Commonwealth  of  Massachusetts  still  pays  an  average  of  about  $4000  a 
year  in  poultry  prizes  at  agricultural  fairs. 

535 


536 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


At  first,  prizes  were  given  to  common  barnyard,  or  dunghill, 
fowls,  and  to  poultry  of  other  kinds,  not  as  individuals  but  as 
flocks,  or,  in  some  cases,  as  representatives  of  flocks.  In  one  of 
the  earliest  reports,  a  farmer  who  exhibited  a  few  turkeys  for  no 
particular  merit  was  awarded  a  bounty  because  the  birds  represented 
a  flock  of  eighty.  Classification  was  made  for  popular  varieties,  but 
if  entries  were  not  made  in  these  classes,  the  poultry  committee  of 
an  agricultural  society,  in  its  discretion,  awarded  bounties  to  exhib- 
itors whose  exhibit  represented  real  effort  to  develop  poultry  cul- 
ture as  a  farm  interest.  The  practical  phase  of  poultry  exhibits  at 
agricultural  fairs  soon  disappeared,  and  they  became,  for  the  most 
part,  poorly  patronized  displays  of  thoroughbred  stock  of  very  ordi- 
nary or  very  poor  quality.  This  continued  to  be  the  general  con- 
dition for  many  years.  When,  after  a  time,  efforts  were  made  to 
improve  poultry  departments  ^at  fairs,  development  was  naturally 
(through  imitation)  along  the  lines  of  the  fancier's  shows. 

Modern  poultry  exhibitions.  The  modern  poultry  exhibition 
combines  sporting,  commercial,  and  educational  features,  with  com- 
mercial interests  on  the  whole  most  potent,  sporting  interests  tend- 
ing to  decrease,  and  the  educational  influence  tending  to  increase. 
The  dominance  of  commercial  interests  is  most  noticeable  in  the 
larger  shows ;  in  small  local  shows  the  sporting  and  educational 
features  may  be  prominent  and  the  commercial  tendencies  hardly 
apparent  or  entirely  absent.  As  shows  increase  in  size,  the  com- 
mercial aspects  develop,  partly  of  necessity  —  for  expenses  increase 
amazingly — and  partly  because  the  growing  importance  of  the  show 
gives  commercial  value  to  prizes  won  there,  and  so  induces  com- 
mercial breeders  to  exhibit,  as  well  as  fanciers.  The  larger  and  more 
important  the  show,  the  greater  the  commercial  value  of  a  prize 
won  there.  So  competition  at  the  great  shows,  and  especially  in 
the  leading  popular  classes,  tends  .more  and  more  to  become  a  con- 
test of  commercial  breeders  for  the  lion's  share  of  the  trade  in  eggs 
for  hatching  and  in  stock  for  exhibition  or  for  breeding.  In  such 
competition  the  amateur  fancier  has  little  chance  to  win  more  than 
an  occasional  prize,  for  with  the  commercial  breeder,  who  is  a  pro- 
fessional fancier,  to  win  is  necessary.  He  cannot  afford  to  let  prizes 
go  to  others  if  by  any  legitimate  method  he  can  secure  them  for 
himself,  nor  can  he  afford  to  be  satisfied  with  a  part  of  the  more 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  537 

important  prizes  in  the  class  in  which  he  competes,  if  by  any  means 
he  can  secure  them  all.  The  advertising  value  of  the  five  first  prizes 
on  a  variety  at  a  New  York  show  is  worth  probably  twice  as  much 
as  the  advertising  value  of  four  of  the  five  first  prizes,  and  many 
times  the  advertising  value  of  one  prize  in  a  class.  One  first  prize 
may  mean  a  chance  bird  ;  the  winning  will  attract  little  attention. 
The  winning  of  five  first  prizes  on  one  variety  indicates  clear  supe- 
riority over  competitors  and  gives  a  breeder  who  advertises  them 
sufficiently  the  cream  of  the  trade  in  his  variety  for  the  year. 

Educational  aspects  of  exhibitions.  The  educational  value  of 
a  great  poultry  show  is  much  greater  than  that  of  smaller  shows, 
but  the  number  of  those  who  can  actually  appreciate  the  great 
show  is  relatively  small,  and  as  big  shows  are  now  conducted,  a 
visitor's  appreciation  of  the  exhibits  depends  on  his  personal 
knowledge  of  poultry  and,  to  a  considerable  extent  also,  upon 
acquaintance  with  the  exhibitors,  with  their  stock,  and  with  their 
previous  records.  The  novice  in  the  poultry  fancy  in  a  large  show 
has  usually  been  left  to  his  own  devices ;  though  poultry  is  espe- 
cially adapted  to  demonstration,  no  provision  has  been  made  for  his 
entertainment  or  instruction.  The  crowds  and  the  show  as  a  com- 
plete spectacle  may  interest  him,  but  he  is  likely  to  be  very  much 
at  a  loss  to  know  what  it  is  all  about,  and  few  persons  not  able  to 
form  an  intelligent  opinion  of  their  own  about  the  exhibits  and  the 
merits  of  the  awards  care  to  stay  long  at  a  poultry  show  where  there 
is  no  one  to  guide  and  instruct  them.  Thus  the  actual  educational 
value  of  the  great  show  is  closely  limited  to  its  value  to  experts.  To 
an  expert  poultryman  one  large  show  is  worth  scores  of  small  shows, 
giving  him  in  a  few  days  a  much  more  accurate  idea  of  conditions 
and  progress  in  various  directions  than  could  be  obtained  in  weeks 
of  traveling  among  the  breeders  and  manufacturers  or  among  the 
small  shows. 

That  the  neglect  of  novices  among  poultrymen,  and  of  the  public 
at  the  large  shows,  is  a  fault  which  should  be  remedied  is  generally 
admitted,  but  it  is  hard  to  change  the  customs  of  exhibitions  of 
this  character,  and  the  general  opinion  of  those  who  have  given 
some  study  to  the  subject  is  that  the  reformation  of  the  large  show 
will  come  only  when  various  plans  for  improving  poultry  exhibitions 
have  been  worked  out  in  the  smaller  shows.  For  that  reason  the 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

treatment  of  the  subject  here  will  consider  first  the  small  show  such 
as  may  be  held  by  a  small  group  of  poultrymen  in  any  town  or  by 
the  poultry  students  at  an  agricultural  college,  describing  methods 
of  promoting  and  managing  such  shows  and  suggesting  ways  of 
increasing  their  educational  value. 

A  poultry  show  primarily  a  competition  of  poultry  breeders. 
A  breeder  of  one  or  many  varieties  of  poultry  may  make  a  dis- 
play of  a  number  of  specimens  of  each,  but  with  the  element  of 
competition  lacking,  such  a  display  will  attract  much  less  attention 
than  a  competitive  exhibition  containing  fewer  specimens  and  in- 
ferior quality.  The  individual  breeder's  display  may  make  a  very 
attractive  and  important  feature  of  a  show,  but  no  matter  how  large 
or  how  good  it  may  be,  it  does  not  constitute  a  show  as  the  term  is 
commonly  understood  and  used.  The  individual  breeder's  display 
represents  his  own  judgment  of  his  own  stock,  or  at  most  the 
judgment  of  an  expert  in  his  employ.  In  competition  the  relative 
merits  of  the  birds  are  decided  by  disinterested  parties  according 
to  common  standards.  A  judge  is  supposed  to  judge  the  birds 
without  knowing,  or,  if  he  knows,  without  considering,  to  whom 
they  belong,  but  the  object  of  competition  is  always  to  determine  the 
relative  skill  of  breeders  as  shown  in  the  quality  of  their  products. 

Competition  in  live  poultry  necessarily  in  standard  stock  and 
its  products.  Only  things  of  the  same  kind  can  be  compared. 
Competition  in  living  birds  is  on  a  basis  of  values  measured  mostly 
by  the  eye.  The  table  properties  of  a  live  bird  are  partly  but  not 
fully  indicated  by  its  weight,  condition,  and  shape,  with  feathers  on. 
The  insufficiency  of  judgment  for  these  qualities  while  birds  are 
living  is  so  clear  to  every  one  that,  though  classes  are  sometimes 
provided  for  live  market  poultry  at  shows,  neither  "exhibitors  nor 
the  public  take  much  interest  in  them.  Competition  in  poultry 
products  —  eggs  and  dressed  poultry  —  also  resolves  itself  into  a 
competition  in  the  products  of  similar  varieties  of  poultry,  because 
differences  in  size  and  color  of  eggs  and  carcasses  make  it  neces- 
sary to  classify  them  accordingly,  and  because  continuous  production 
of  eggs  or  poultry  of  a  given  description  requires  the  maintenance 
of  a  flock  of  such  uniformity  as  can  be  best  secured  by  careful 
breeding  to  a  particular  type.  While  it  is  true  that  in  the  general 
market  handlers  and  consumers  pay  no  attention  to  breed  and 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  539 

variety  differences,  and  also  that  these  differences  are  largely  super- 
ficial, close  competition  in  eggs  and  dressed  poultry  inevitably 
leads  producers  to  give  more  attention  to  uniformity  at  all  points, 
and,  as  competitive  exhibitors,  to  insist  on  classification  by  breeds 
and  sometimes  by  varieties.  The  exhibits  of  poultry  at  poultry 
shows  are  almost  exclusively  of  live  fancy  poultry,  and  this  will 
probably  always  be  the  case  in  the  great  majority  of  shows,  for  the 
conditions  of  exhibiting  poultry  to  be  judged  on  appearance  and 
poultry  produce  to  be  judged  on  actual  selling  value  are  different, 
and  the  possible  values  of  winnings  on  exhibits  of  eggs  and  dressed 
poultry  are  comparatively  small.  In  the  development  of  shows  the 
fancy  comes  first. 

An  elementary  poultry  show.  A  few  competing  exhibits  and 
a  judge  to  examine  them  and  make  the  awards  constitute  an  ele- 
mentary show.  The  cost  of  a  judge's  services  renders  it  practically 
necessary  that  the  number  of  exhibits  be  large  enough  to  make  it 
worth  while  to  engage  a  judge.  At  the  seasons  (fall  and  winter) 
when  most  shows  are  held,  suitable  shelter  must  be  provided  for  the 
exhibits  brought  together.  Usually  a  public  hall  or  a  conveniently 
located  vacant  storeroom  is  hired.  The  expenses  for  a  judge  and  a 
hall  are  the  principal  items  of  necessary  outlay  in  holding  a  small 
local  show.  A  small  amount  is  required  for  printing.  If  a  judge 
can  be  obtained  near  by,  and  if  the  show  is  limited,  as  it  should  be, 
to  two  or,  at  most,  three  days,  a  little  show  may  be  held  at  a  total 
outlay  of  from  twenty-five  to  thirty  dollars.  When  a  judge  must  be 
brought  from  some  distance,  the  cost  of  judging  is  much  higher, 
and  the  average  small  two-or-three-day  show  costs  from  fifty  to  one 
hundred  dollars  for  judging,  rent,  and  incidental  expenses,  all  the 
work  connected  with  it  being  done,  as  a  rule,  by  the  officers  without 
compensation. 

Financing  a  show.  The  small  amount  of  money  needed  for  the 
preliminary  work  of  a  show  is  usually  provided  by  dues  of  mem- 
bers of  an  association,  or  advanced  by  persons  interested.  The 
regular  receipts  come  from  two  sources,  —  entry  fees  for  exhibits 
and  admission  fees  of  visitors.  In  a  rough  division  of  the  business 
features  of  the  show  it  is  usually  calculated  that  the  entry  fees  for 
exhibits  will  pay  the  judge  and  the  regular  premiums,  and  that,  with 
fair  attendance,  the  door  receipts  will  pay  the  rent  and  incidental 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

expenses.  On  this  basis  most  small  shows  can  make  a  very  low 
entry  fee,  especially  if  they  give  ribbons  instead  of  regular  cash 
prizes.  On  a  show  of  several  hundred  birds,  with  exhibitors  fur- 
nishing their  own  coops,  a  fee  of  ten  or  fifteen  cents  a  bird  will  often 
pay  for  the  judge  and  for  feed  for  the  birds  during  the  show.  In 
these  small  shows  the  entry  fee  is  rarely  placed  higher  than  twenty- 
five  cents  per  single  bird,  and  one  dollar  per  pen  of  five  birds 
(a  male  and  four  females).  In  nearly  all  shows  the  payment  of 
regular  prizes  is  contingent  on  the  number  of  entries  in  the  class 
being  sufficient  to  make  the  entry  fees  pay  the  prize  money  and 
other  expenses  which  the  entry  fee  should  cover.  If  this  is  not 
done,  shrewd  exhibitors  can  enter  just  enough  birds  in  many  classes 
to  take  the  prize  money,  and  the  show  will  lose  on  every  such  class. 
When  a  show  association  furnishes  coops,  the  entry  fee  must  be 
high  enough  to  cover  the  cost  of  cooping. 

A  very  small  charge  for  admission  usually  brings  in  enough 
money  to  pay  the  rent  and  the  incidental  expenses  of  a  small  show. 
At  ten  or  fifteen  cents  each,  several  hundred  visitors  may  give  as 
much  as  is  needed,  or  so  near  it  that  the  promoters  are  satisfied. 
Outside  of  large  cities  twenty-five  cents  is  the  maximum  charge  for 
adults,  with  ten  or  fifteen  cents  for  children.  On  such  a  modest 
scale  of  arrangements  and  prices  a  local  poultry  show  is  on  the 
same  basis  as  any  other  local  entertainment,  and,  wherever  it  is 
possible  to  get  together  some  two  hundred  birds  that  will  pass  as 
representatives  of  established  varieties  of  poultry,  may  be  made 
instructive  to  exhibitors  and  entertaining  to  visitors.  The  profit 
cannot  be  large,  nor  can  the  loss.  This  type  of  show  is  especially 
adapted  to  places  where  breeders  are  mostly  novices,  but  may  be 
used  to  advantage  by  breeders  of  considerable  experience.  A  show 
in  a  small  place  is  much  more  likely  to  be  permanent  if  run  on  a 
small  scale  than  if  the  management  undertakes  to  attract  entries 
from  abroad  and  build  up  a  big  show. 

The  work  of  running  a  show.  Usually  two  or  three  persons  do 
all  the  work  connected  with  a  small  poultry  show.  Even  for  a  small 
show  the  amount  of  work  to  be  done  is  much  greater  than  is  usually 
supposed.  For  a  small  local  show  soliciting  only  local  exhibits  the 
promoters  have  to  do  a  great  deal  of  personal  work,  —  beginning 
weeks  or  months  in  advance, — persuading  poultry  keepers  to 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  541 

exhibit,  advising  them  in  regard  to  selection  and  preparation  of 
exhibits,  etc.  The  motives  which  induce  men  (and  occasionally 
women)  to  do  this  are  various.  Some  do  it  out  of  interest  in  the 
development  of  poultry  culture,  some  for  such  prominence  as  it 
may  give  them,  some  because  they  like  such  work.  As  the  work 
is  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  rewards,  the  poultrymen  benefited 
usually  accept  the  service  without  question  as  to  the  motives.  Those 
who,  without  previous  experience,  undertake  to  make  a  poultry  show 
should  understand  that  if  they  go  into  it  they  must  give  it  a  great 
deal  of  time  and  thought,  especially  during  the  first  few  years. 
Some  one  (usually  the  secretary)  supervises  everything  and  person- 
ally sees  that  details  are  looked  after,  though  some  of  the  work  may 
be  done  by  others.  One  of  the  most  important  points  in  the  manage- 
ment of  any  show,  large  or  small,  is  that  it  shall  have  a  single  head. 

General  quality  of  exhibits.  In  localities  where  no  shows  have 
been  held  the  quality  of  exhibits  is  usually  rather  poor.  The  breeders 
of  pure-bred  stock  in  such  places  have,  as  a  rule,  very  imperfect 
ideas  of  what  constitutes  quality  in  their  stock.  Those  who  feel 
most  sure  of  their  knowledge  of  requirements,  if  they  have  not 
exhibited  elsewhere,  are  often  most  rudely  undeceived  when  their 
birds  are  judged.  The  greater  number  of  poultry  keepers  who  might 
exhibit,  however,  are  reluctant  to  do  so,  feeling  that  their  stock  is 
not  good  enough.  The  most  effective  appeal  that  can  be  made  to 
such  persons  to  exhibit  is  the  educational  appeal,  —  the  invitation 
to  bring  their  stock  to  be  passed  upon  by  an  expert,  and  to  learn 
just  how  good  it  is  and  what  they  must  do  to  make  it  better  accord- 
ing to  existing  standards.  Provided  there  is  not  too  great  disparity 
of  quality  in  competing  exhibits,  so  that  the  owners  of  the  poorer 
stock  are  entirely  out  of  the  running,  just  as  much  enthusiasm  and 
interest  may  be  developed  in  a  competition  with  ordinary  good 
birds  as  in  classes  of  greatly  superior  quality,  because  the  com- 
petitors generally  are  in  the  same  (novice)  class. 

Judges.  Judges  for  initial  small  shows  should  be  men  of  con- 
siderable experience  and  good  reputation.  It  is  a  mistake  to  take 
an  unknown  and  inexperienced  judge,  for  the  services  of  a  judge  are 
chiefly  valuable  to  exhibitors  as  a  means  of  instruction,  and  that  judge 
is  worth  most  who  has  the  widest  experience  and  can  discuss  and 
practically  demonstrate  each  variety  as  he  judges  it.  In  shows  so 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

large  that  the  judges  engaged  must  be  free  from  interruption  if  they 
are  to  get  their  work  done  on  time,  it  is  often  necessary  to  exclude 
exhibitors  from  the  hall  or  from  those  parts  of  it  where  judging  is 
going  on,  but  in  shows  of  the  class  under  consideration  exhibitors 
should  be  given  every  facility  to  see  the  judging  of  their  exhibits 
and  to  learn  the  judge's  reasons  for  placing  birds  as  he  does,  for 
in  this  is  the  greatest  educational  value  of  the  show  for  them. 

Methods  of  judging.  The  method  of  judging  small  shows  is 
usually  by  the  score  card.  This  method  makes  specific  estimate  of 
values,  and  so  is  more  satisfactory  to  novices  than  the  comparison 
method,  and  more  useful  for  instruction  where  many  points  are 
considered.  These  methods  will  be  explained  in  the  following 
chapter.  Exhibitors  at  shows  of  this  kind  should  insist  that  the 
judge  be  as  severe  on  faults  in  their  fowls  as  he  would  be  at  a 
higher-class  show.  Some  judges  always  score  high  at  small  shows, 
cutting  faults  very  lightly  when  judging,  and  so  give  exhibitors 
false  ideas  of  the  value  of  their  birds. 

Classification.  The  classification  of  poultry  in  exhibitions  should 
be  the  same,  regardless  of  the  size  and  importance  of  the  show 
and  of  the  quality  of  the  exhibits.  By  wrong  classification  the 
greater  part  of  the  possible  educational  value  of  a  show  may  be  lost 
to  exhibitors,  and  the  exhibits  may  be  misrepresented  in  reports 
of  awards.  Different  kinds  of  birds  are  not  strictly  comparable ; 
neither  are  birds  of  the  same  variety  but  of  different  sexes  and 
ages.  Young  birds  must  be  favored  in  weight  and  some  points  of 
development,  old  birds  in  color  (which  has  a  tendency  to  fade  with 
age)  and  in  all  points  where  age  brings  deterioration.  The  common 
classification  for  fowls  makes  five  classes  for  each  variety,  —  four 
classes  for  single  birds  (cock,  cockerel,  hen,  and  pullet)  and  one  class 
for  exhibition  pens,  a  pen  being  composed  of  five  specimens,  a  male 
matched  according  to  Standard  requirements  with  four  females.  The 
single-bird  classes  are  also  called  the  "open  classes."  In  ducks, 
geese,  and  turkeys  the  same  classification  is  used,  the  old  and  young 
of  each  sex  competing  separately.  In  turkeys,  and  occasionally  in 
geese,  two  classes  for  old  birds  (particularly  males)  are  made,  two- 
year-old  birds  competing  separately  and  all  over  two  years  classing 
as  "  aged  "  birds.  In  the  single  classes  each  bird  is  judged  on  its 
individual  merits  in  comparison  with  competitors  in  the  same  class. 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  543 

In  pens  the  birds  are  judged  collectively,  a  disqualification  on  one 
bird  throwing  the  whole  pen  out  of  competition.  It  is  required  that 
the  females  match  as  closely  as.  possible.  The  four  females  are 
usually  considered  as  representing  half  the  value  of  the  pen.  A 
bad  practice,  common  in  small  shows,  is  to  consider  the  best  male 
and  the  four  best  females  of  an  exhibitor  his  "  exhibition  pen  " 
and  award  prizes  on  these,  the  pen  being  selected  from  the  scores 
after  judging,  and  existing  as  a  pen  only  on  the  score  card.  This 
practice  entirely  loses  sight  of  the  object  of  giving  prizes  for  pens 
of  matched  birds,  which  is  to  put  a  high  premium  on  uniformity 
and  stimulate  breeders  to  work  for  it  at  every  point. 

In  general,  competition  in  pens  has  been  between  birds  of  any 
age.  Wherever  this  is  the  case,  it  tends  to  exclude  old  cocks  from 
pen  competitions,  because  a  well-developed  cockerel  can,  as  a  rule, 
win  over  a  superior  cock  by  virtue  of  better  condition.  Many  of 
the  finest  old  hens  are  also  excluded  for  the  same  reason.  The 
tendency  of  the  competition  of  birds  of  all  ages  in  the  same  class  in 
pens  is  to  bring  into  the  exhibition-pen  classes  the  most  matured 
young  birds  and  those  adults  which  show  least  signs  of  age,  such 
a  combination  having  an  advantage,  in  condition  and  uniformity  of 
appearance,  over  better  birds  either  more  or  less  mature  in  appear- 
ance. On  this  account  some  shows  are  now  making  separate  pen 
classes  for  old  and  young  birds.  Another  feature  at  some  shows 
is  special  classes  for  pens  mated  for  breeding  in  varieties  in  which 
special  matings  are  used.  While  custom  decrees  that  fowls  shall 
be  shown  only  singly  or  in  pens,  it  would  be  good  policy  in  many 
small  shows  to  provide  classes  for  specially  mated  pairs  or  trios  as 
well  as  of  specially  mated  pens,  or  instead  of  the  pens  if  the  ex- 
hibitor also  has  birds  in  the  open  and  regular  pen  classes.  The 
stock  and  judgment  of  the  exhibitor  are  shown  and  the  principle 
of  mating  illustrated  as  well  with  one  female  as  with  four. 

Arrangement  of  classes  in  the  showroom.  The  order  of  the 
arrangement  of  classes  usually  follows  the  order  of  descriptions  in 
the  Standard,  or  places  the  classes  systematically  according  to  type. 
The  latter  is  the  practice  at  New  York  and  Boston,  and  at  a  num- 
ber of  the  leading  shows.  The  Standard  arrangement  is  more  gen- 
erally used,  not  because  it  is  better  but  because  it  is  natural  for 
inexperienced  managers  to  adopt  that  order  of  arrangement,  and 


544 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


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POULTRY  CULTURE 

once  adopted  at  a  show  it  is  likely  to  be  continued  there.  The 
arrangement  at  the  leading  shows  is  generally  correct,  though  in 
some  of  the  less  important  classes  the  system  is  not  observed.1  It  is 
usual  to  number  the  single  entries  of  all  varieties  consecutively,  with 
the  pens  of  all  varieties  following  in  the  same  order.  All  shows 
accept  non- Standard  as  well  as  Standard  varieties  and  make  classes 
for  them  as  soon  as  the  breeders  offer  entries  enough  to  warrant  it. 
Unclassified  exhibits  usually  compete  with  one  another  in  what  is 
called  the  "Any  Other  Variety,"  or  "A.  O.  V.,"  class.  In  this 
case  birds  are  not  actually  judged  in  competition,  but  prizes  are 
awarded  to  the  most  meritorious  birds  in  the  class.2  Exhibition 
pens  are  usually  placed  in  the  best  location  in  the  hall,  with  wide 
aisles  between  the  rows  of  coops,  because  they  attract  the  attention 
of  sight-seeing  visitors  more  than  do  the  birds  in  the  open  classes. 

Sweepstakes  prizes.  Prizes  for  which  different  varieties  com- 
pete are  not  now  as  generally  offered  as  was  the  custom  some 
years  ago.  To  the  inexperienced  manager  they  seem  a  good 
thing.  The  experienced  manager  has  learned  that  there  is  noth- 
ing connected  with  the  showing  of  poultry  so  certain  to  cause  dis- 
putes and  hard  feeling  among  exhibitors,  and  to  make  trouble  for 
him,  as  a  sweepstakes  prize.  Persons  offering  liberal  special  prizes 
often  wish  to  make  them  sweepstakes  prizes.  It  is  much  better 
to  give  the  prizes  on  a  single  variety  or  breed,  or  to  divide  them 
into  smaller  prizes  to  be  offered  in  that  way. 

Special  exhibits.  Noncompetitive  displays  in  extra  large  sepa- 
rate coops  are  most  attractive  to  the  general  public.  The  adver- 
tising value  of  such  displays  to  the  exhibitor  is  so  great  that,  as 
a  matter  of  business  policy,  the  management  of  a  show  usually 
gives  the  preference,  in  renting  display  coops,  to  exhibitors  making 
large  entries  in  competitive  classes.  At  small  shows  where  there 

1  The  order  of  arrangement  at  the  Madison  Square  Garden  (New  York)  .show 
is  most  interesting,  because  it  has  furnished  the  general  plan  for  the  arrangement 
of  first-class  shows,  has  carried  out  its  plan  more  consistently  than  any  other,  has 
been  scientific  in  the  general  arrangement  of  types,  and,  in  placing  the  varieties 
of  the  different  breeds,  has  kept  them  in  the  chronological  order  of  their  intro- 
duction to  the  public. 

2  It  is  worth  noting  in  this  connection  that  the  attitude  of  the  shows  toward 
the  multiplication  of  breeds  and  varieties  is  just  the  opposite  of  that  of  the 
American  Poultry  Association.    The  shows  encourage  the  making  of  new  vari- 
eties and  give  the  promoters  every  facility  for  exploiting  them. 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  549 

is  room  to  spare,  exhibitors  are  still  often  allowed  to  place  in  ' '  sale 
classes  "  any  stock  they  choose,  and  sell  from  these  for  immediate 
delivery ;  but  as  shows  increase  in  number  of  entries,  this  leads  to 
many  abuses,  and  furnishes  opportunities  for  evasions  of  the  neces- 
sary rule  that  exhibits  must  not  be  removed  until  the  close  of  the 
show.  If  authorized  to  do  so  and  given  a  fixed  price,  show  ass6ci- 
ations  usually  undertake  to  sell  exhibits  on  commission  for  exhibi- 
tors not  in  attendance.  An  exhibitor  giving  a  price  on  a  bird 
entered  thereby  authorizes  the  association  to  sell  the  bird  at  that 
price,  and  according  to  custom  the  association  is  obliged  to  sell 
the  bird  at  the  catalogue  price  to  the  first  person  who  claims  it 
and  pays  the  money  down. 

Balancing  exhibits.  Balancing  the  exhibits  of  poultry  to  add 
to  the  general  attractiveness  of  the  show  is  a  matter  to  which  the 
experienced  show  manager  gives  a  great  deal  of  attention,  often 
going  so  far  as  to  offer  liberal  rebates  on  entry  fees  to  exhibitors 
who  will  send  varied  exhibits  of  rare  specimens  of  good  quality. 
The  manager  of  a  small  show  has  no  inducements  to  give  to  the 
professional  exhibitors  of  the  rare  and  odd  varieties  that  interest 
the  general  public  more  than  the  classes  in  which  competition  is 
keen,  but  he  ought  to  make  special  efforts  to  get  entries  (if  only 
one  or  two  specimens)  from  breeders  of  all  varieties  and  all  kinds 
of  poultry  in  which  there  is  little  interest.  In  the  absence  of  better 
quality  any  specimen  that  will  pass  for  a  representative  of  an 
established  variety  helps  to  fill  out  and  balance  a  poultry  show. 

Practical  exhibits.  Dressed-poultry  and  egg  competitions  inter- 
est the  ordinary  visitor  to  a  poultry  show  more  than  the  live  birds, 
because  every  one  feels  that  he  is  something  of  a  judge  of  merit 
in  food  products.  Exhibits  of  this  class  are  much  harder  to  get 
than  exhibits  of  fancy  live  poultry,  not  only  because  poultry  shows 
are  mostly  held  at  the  season  least  favorable  for  making  displays 
of  this  kind,  but  because  most  of  the  exhibitors  are  not  especially 
interested  in  these  lines,  and  because  winning  prizes  on  eggs  and 
dressed  poultry  at  a  poultry  show  does  not  give  an  exhibitor  such 
advantage  over  other  producers  as  does  winning  prizes  on  Standard- 
bred  birds.  No  competitive  dressed-poultry  and  egg  exhibits  of 
any  importance  have  ever  been  made  in  America,  except  in  a  few 
cases  where  state  and  provincial  governments  have  given  liberal 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

prizes  and  no  entry  fees  have  been  charged.  With  a  little  effort 
directed  especially  in  that  direction  egg  competitions  among  ex- 
hibitors of  live  poultry  might  be  developed  in  any  small  show. 
Something,  too,  may  be  done  with  dressed  poultry  through  cooper- 
ation with  poultrymen  dressing  considerable  quantities  of  it,  or 
with  nonproducing  local  dealers.  In  either  case  the  exhibits  would 
come  in  as  noncompetitive  displays,  on  practically  the  same  footing 
as  displays  of  incubators,  brooders,  and  poultry  supplies.  Under 
existing  conditions  this  seems  the  best  way  to  treat  this  class  of 
produce  in  most  small  shows. 

Combination  shows.  Combining  exhibits  of  other  stock  with 
poultry  shows  to  attract  larger  attendance  is  the  rule  in  all  large 
shows  and  many  small  ones.  Pigeons,  pet  stock,  cats,  and  some- 
times dogs  are  exhibited  with  poultry.  A  cat  department  will  attract 
more  people  who  would  not  otherwise  attend  the  show  than  any  of 
the  others  mentioned.  Pigeons  and  pet  stock  are  usually  a  loss  "to 
the  management,  but  the  departments  are  maintained  to  add  to  the 
variety,  on  the  same  principle  that  exhibits  of  nonpopular  kinds  of 
poultry  are  specially  solicited.  There  is  a  growing  feeling  in  regard 
to  all  these  side  shows  that,  with  popular  development  of  the  exhibi- 
tion possibilities  of  poultry,  they  might  well  be  dispensed  with. 

Mercantile  exhibits.  Displays  of  poultry  supplies  have  become 
a  very  important  feature  in  all  the  larger  poultry  shows,  are  often 
found  in  small  shows,  and  are  everywhere  one  of  the  most  popular 
features  of  a  show.  Incubators  hatching  and  little  chicks  or  duck- 
lings in  brooders  interest  all  classes  of  visitors,  and  an  extended 
array  of  poultry  appliances  and  supplies  will  hold  the  attention  of 
many  poultry  keepers  long  after  they  have  tired  of  looking  at  the 
birds.  These  displays  are  usually  made  by  local  dealers,  and  by 
inventors  of  appliances  who  wish  to  exploit  a  particular  article. 

Suggestions  for  improving  appearance  of  regular  displays.  The 
most  marked  feature  of  poultry  shows  is  sameness  in  the  method  of 
displaying  exhibits.  The  breaking  up  of  the  display  of  an  exhibitor 
to  bring  together  specimens  which  are  to  compete  in  the  same  class 
makes  impossible  any  general  effort  to  beautify  the  displays  by 
appropriate  setting  or  decoration,  or  to  give  any  special  character 
to  an  exhibit.  A  few  exhibitors  decorate  their  coops,  especially 
coops  of  birds  winning  important  prizes  after  the  awards  are  up, 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  551 

but  most  of  the  coops  are  bare  except  for  the  entry  number,  a  rib- 
bon if  the  bird  has  won  a  place,  and  perhaps  the  card  of  the  owner. 
The  rule  prohibiting  distinctive  marks  on  coops  ought  everywhere 
to  be  abolished.  If  this  were  done,  and  a  uniform  style  of  combina- 
tion shipping  and  exhibition  coop  adopted  (in  standard  sizes  appro- 
priate for  the  various  sizes  of  birds  and  classes),  and  exhibitors 
required  to  furnish  their  own  coops  and  allowed  to  decorate  them 
as  they  saw  fit,  the  regular  competitive  exhibits  at  shows  would 
soon  become  more  attractive ;  for  much  can  be  done,  in  the  way  of 
showing  off  birds,  by  the  very  simple  device  of  painting  the  back 
and  sides  of  coops  in  shades  which  contrast  effectively  with  the 
colors  of  the  birds.1  At  most  small  shows,  exhibitors  furnish  their 
own  coops,  and  such  shows  might  well  inaugurate  the  practice  of 
using  a  standard  style  of  individual  coop  and  making  efforts  to  dis- 
play each  variety  separately.  This  method  of  cooping  would  also 
make  it  practicable  to  carry  out  a  suggestion  often  made  by  exhib- 
itors that,  after  judging,  the  birds  in  a  class  be  arranged  in  order  of 
merit,  thus  enabling  every  one  to  make  direct  comparisons. 

Ring  judging,  a  common  practice  in  live-stock  shows  and  in 
the  pigeon  departments  of  poultry  shows,  may  easily  be  made  an 
attractive  feature  of  judging  in  small  shows,  though  conditions  in 
the  larger  shows  often  prohibit  it.  In  this  form  of  judging,  the 
competing  specimens  are  displayed  and  judged  by  classes,  on  a 
large  table  before  the  audience,  each  specimen  being  in  charge 
of  its  owner  or  attendant.  The  practice  has  been  used  in  a  few 
poultry  shows  with  satisfactory  results. 

Suggestions  for  special  displays.  A  statement  of  a  few  of  the 
special  poultry  displays  that  have  proved  very  attractive  to  visitors 
will  indicate  something  of  the  possibilities  of  development  of  this 
line  of  attractions. 

An  exhibitor  showed  a  Barred  Plymouth  Rock  cock  and  hen  with 
over  a  hundred  chicks  hatched  from  her  eggs  in  the  preceding  season. 

1  This  would  not  be  the  only  advantage  of  the  exhibitor  owning  his  own  coops 
and  using  them  at  all  shows,  large  as  well  as  small.  There  would  be  no  handling 
of  the  birds  in  transferring  from  the  shipping  to  the  exhibition  coop  and  back 
again  at  the  close  of  the  show,  and  less  opportunity  for  birds  to  get  lost.  The 
responsibility  of  keeping  his  coops  clean  and  sanitary  would  rest  with  the  exhib- 
itor, and  he  would  not,  as  now,  run  the  risk  of  having  his  birds  placed  in  exhibition 
coops  that  have  been  occupied  by  diseased  specimens  from  other  flocks. 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

People  came  in  crowds  to  see  the  sight.  It  was  a  drawing  card  for 
the  show,  the  best  of  advertising  for  the  exhibitor,  and  an  instructive 
exhibit.  A  much  smaller  family  than  this  could  be  used  as  a  feature. 

Persons  crossing  varieties  of  poultry  often  get  some  very  inter- 
esting results.  Exhibits  of  crossbred  birds  presenting  striking  char- 
acteristics (either  of  uniformity  or  of  dissimilarity)  always  attract 
attention,  especially  if  the  parents  are  exhibited  with  them. 

Breeders  of  established  varieties  often  experiment  with  them, 
trying  to  modify  the  type  as  to  a  single  character.  In  nearly  all 
breeds  heavyweight  strains  are  made  occasionally,  and  are  always 
of  interest  to  many  persons.  New  color  patterns  and  new  types  of 
comb  in  breeds  are  often  developed  by  breeders,  and  are  always  of 
passing  interest  as  exhibits,  though  they  may  not  take  with  the 
public.  Many  such  modifications  have  been  worked  out  again  and 
again  by  different  breeders  in  different  localities. 

Competitions  for  children  may  be  very  effectively  used,  both  to 
add  to  the  interest  of  a  show  and  to  increase  the  interest  in  poultry 
in  the  community. 

Models  of  appliances  in  use  by  local  poultrymen,  particularly  of 
homemade  appliances  devised  by  them,  could  be  made  an  inter- 
esting feature  in  small  shows. 

Collections  of  such  poultry  literature  as  breeders'  catalogues, 
supply  catalogues,  poultry  journals,  Experiment  Station  and  United 
States  government  bulletins  are  easily  made,  and  when  well 
arranged,  add  materially  to  the  interest  and  attractiveness  of  the 
show.  Good  collections  of  poultry  books  can  often  be  made  by 
combining  the  poultry  libraries  of  local  poultrymen.  Anything 
that  would  be  of  interest  in  a  poultry  man's  yard  or  home  will  be 
of  interest  in  a  show.  Working  up  such  accessory  exhibits  usually 
takes  more  time  than  those  looking  after  the  competitive  exhibits 
can  give.  For  that  reason  it  ought  to  be  in  the  hands  of  a  special 
committee  or  of  an  assistant  secretary. 

Institutes  at  poultry  shows.  Lectures  may  be  made  an  attractive 
feature  at  small  shows.  Indeed,  they  are  very  much  better  adapted 
to  small  shows  than  to  large  ones,  where  the  crowds,  the  confusion, 
and  the  din  make  it  hard  for  speakers  to  talk,  except  to  small  groups. 
Many  of  the  poultry  judges  are  very  acceptable  lecturers  on  both 
practical  and  fancy  topics.  In  some  states  it  is  possible  for  the 


POULTRY  EXHIBITIONS  553 

managers  of  a  poultry  exhibition,  by  cooperating  with  a  local  agri- 
cultural society  or  by  direct  application  to  the  state  department  of 
agriculture,  to  arrange  for  lectures  to  be  given  at  the  show  under 
the  auspices  of  the  agricultural  department,  in  which  case  speakers 
furnished  by  the  department  are  paid  by  the  state.  If  an  associa- 
tion has  to  provide  speakers  for  its  institute,  it  can  often  get  a  very 
acceptable  lecture,  talk,  or  paper  from  some  of  its  members,  or  from 
persons  in  near-by  towns,  at  very  moderate  cost.  Institute  work 
should  be  a  feature  of  every  show  where  conditions  admit,  and 
every  effort  should  be  made  to  use  local  poultry  keepers  in  this  line 
of  work,  if  only  for  five-minute  talks. 

College  poultry  exhibitions.  Poultry  exhibitions  at  agricultural 
colleges  and  schools  call  for  special  mention.  It  is  not  generally 
practicable  to  make  them  competitive  in  the  same  sense  as  the 
ordinary  exhibition.  The  show  is  made  for  the  students,  the 
object  being  to  bring  together  a  larger  collection  and  a  greater 
variety  of  poultry  than  could  be  maintained  for  practice  at  the 
college  or  school  plant,  and  to  give  the  students  practice  both  in 
judging  and  in  the  management  of  a  poultry  show.  Shows  of  this 
class  are  rarely  so  located  that  they  can  be  made  an  attraction  to 
the  sight-seeing  public,  but  as  they  are  not  under  expense  for  hall 
rent,  that  is  not  a  serious  matter.  The  logical  development  of  these 
shows  is  along  the  line  of  closer  correlation  with  the  work  of  grad- 
uates of  the  poultry  courses.  The  poultry  show  of  one  year  should 
be  made  up,  in  part,  of  the  exhibits  of  students  in  previous  years, 
and  exhibits  of  results  of  their  work  with  poultry,  with  full  reports 
on  conditions  and  methods  of  production,  should  be  required  of 
students  seeking  the  fullest  recognition  of  accomplishment  that  the 
institution  can  give.  While  college  shows  are  for  the  most  part 
insignificant  at  present,  it  is  very  plain  that  if  they  are  so  developed 
that  even  a  small  proportion  of  the  students  of  each  class  retain 
their  interest  in  the  college  exhibition  after  leaving  the  institution, 
they  will  ultimately  become  large  affairs,  controlled  by  the  techni- 
cally educated  poultry  keepers  of  the  state,  and  of  great  educa- 
tional importance.  In  the  agricultural  college  and  school,  more  than 
anywhere  else,  the  conditions  favor  continuity  and  permanence  of 
exhibitions  and  the  full  development  of  the  educational  possibilities 
of  the  poultry  show. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

FITTING   AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY 

Selecting  specimens  for  exhibition.  The  selection  and  the  prep- 
aration of  poultry  for  exhibition  are  practically  simultaneous  proc- 
esses. Special  attention  to  the  condition  of  the  bird  usually  follows 
its  tentative  selection  as  one  of  those  to  be  exhibited,  but  final  selec- 
tion depends  on  whether  the  specimen  will  be  in  show  condition 
at  the  required  time  or  can  be  kept  in  such  condition  if  it  reaches 
that  stage  of  development  too  early  for  the  show  at  which  the 
owner  wishes  to  exhibit  it.  A  novice  in  showing  poultry  usually 
begins  to  select  and  prepare  his  birds  for  exhibition  a  few  days,  or 
at  most  a  .few  weeks,  before  he  intends  to  exhibit  them.  Almost 
invariably  he  finds  then  many  faults  of  condition  —  as  lack  of 
weight,  dead  and  broken  feathers,  scaly  legs,  etc. — which  might 
have  been  corrected  had  they  been  taken  in  time,  but  which  now 
make  it  inadvisable  to  show  the  birds.  One  of  the  most  important 
points  in  working  up  a  new  local  show  is  to  direct  the  attention  of 
prospective  amateur  exhibitors  to  this  matter  in  time.  This  can 
only  be  done  effectively  by  going  to  their  yards  and  looking  over 
their  stock  with  them. 

An  expert  exhibitor  is  selecting  and  preparing  his  exhibition 
birds  from  the  time  they  are  hatched.  He  notes  certain  birds  as 
suitable  for  exhibition  as  young  birds,  and  certain  others  as  not 
qualified  to  compete  as  young  birds  but  likely  to  be  in  good 
exhibition  form  as  old  birds.  As  nearly  all  birds  fade  somewhat 
with  age,  in  cases  where  strength  of  color  is  a  fault  in  the  young 
bird  the  natural  fading  with  age  may  make  the  bird  of  the  Standard 
color  in  its  second  or  third  year,  and  so  give  it  a  great  advantage  over 
birds  of  the  same  age  which  were  of  the  Standard  color  when  young. 
Thus  females  of  the  ermine  type,  with  so  much  black  in  the  backs 
that  as  pullets  they  would  be  disqualified  if  exhibited,  often  molt 
this  out  and  make  the  finest  exhibition  hens.  Such  birds,  when 
they  come  free  from  disqualifications  late  in  life,  are  peculiarly 

554 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING   POULTRY  555 

valuable  for  exhibition  purposes,  for  a  bird  of  undoubted  age  which 
does  not  require  the  customary  allowance  for  deterioration  due  to 
age  deprives  all  competitors  of  the  benefit  of  such  allowance.  The 
same  thing  is  true  in  regard  to  the  condition  and  development  of 
young  birds.  Whenever  a  bird  that  is  unmistakably  young,  but 
as  well  developed  as  an  old  bird,  appears  in  a  class  of  average 
young  birds,  they  lose  (in  competition  with  it)  the  benefits  of  the 
usual  allowances  for  immaturity. 

In  large  measure,  success  in  exhibiting  poultry  depends  upon 
having  specimens  just  right  for  the  shows  at  which  they  are  to  be 
exhibited.  Inexperienced  exhibitors  often  inadvertently  get  the 
benefit  of  this  without  actually  appreciating  it.  The  seasoned  ex- 
hibitor plans  for  it.  He  has  learned  that  the  plumage  of  a  bird  is 
at  its  best  for  only  a  very  brief  period  after  completing  its  growth  ; 
that  pullets  begin  to  go  off  in  condition  after  laying ;  that  both 
young  and  old  birds  may  fail  to  properly  molt  a  part  of  their 
feathers,  so  that  the  old  dead  feathers,  mixed  with  the  live  ones, 
greatly  detract  from  the  appearance  of  the  bird  ;  and  that  there 
are  numerous  other  little  things  affecting  the  preparation  of  poultry 
for  exhibition,  —  and  he  looks  after  all  these  points. 

Conditioning  exhibition  poultry.  The  natural  conditioning  of 
birds  for  exhibition  is  a  continuous  process.  The  expert  exhibitor 
not  only  plans  to  have  birds  developed  at  a  certain  time,  but  grows 
them  under  conditions  which,  as  far  as  possible,  insure  freedom 
from  faults  which  can  be  prevented  by  giving  the  birds  a  favor- 
able environment  and  a  proper  diet.  All  that  has  been  said  of 
the  advantage  of  natural  conditions  in  growing  poultry  for  mar- 
ket and  egg  production  applies  with  added  emphasis  to  the  grow- 
ing of  stock  for  exhibition  purposes.  Bad  conditions,  lack  of 
range,  overcrowding,  and  improper  diet  while  the  stock  is  growing 
are  the  causes  of  lack  of  size  and  weight,  and  also  of  poor  form 
and  of  color  defects  as  the  birds  approached  maturity.  While 
occasionally  a  back-yard  fancier  giving  close  attention  to  every 
detail  produces  specimens  that  can  hold  their  own  in  any  competi- 
tion, as  a  rule  the  finest  specimens  are  grown  where  the  range  is 
more  than  ample  and  the  food  always  in  full  supply,  and  where 
the  birds  frequent  sun  or  shade  at  will.  Under  such  circumstances 
the  characters  of  an  individual  develop  in  their  finest  form  ;  it 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

grows  to  full  size,  it  is  symmetrical,  and  it  is  not  so  likely  to 
develop  faults  in  the  line  of  weakness  of  color  as  when  conditions 
are  less  favorable.  Birds  grown  under  such  favorable  conditions  are 
often  taken  right  from  the  range  to  the  showroom,  and  if  they  are 
not  shy,  and  take  kindly  to  show  conditions,  they  are  the  most 
attractive  birds  seen  in  the  shows. 

Birds  which  are  intended  for  the  winter  shows,  and  must  be 
kept  housed  for  several  weeks  or  months  before  being  exhibited, 
require  most  careful  handling.  With  fowls  the  males  need  special 
attention  and,  as  far  as  possible,  separate  quarters  for  each  bird ; 
for  when  a  number  are  running  together  after  reaching  sexual  matu- 
rity, only  the  "  boss  "  of  the  lot  develops  fully ;  the  others  are 
cowed  and  worried  and,  though  full  fed,  will  not  shape  up  and  fill 
out  as  a  cockerel  does  when  master  of  his  companions.  Whenever 
it  can  be  done,  each  male  intended  for  exhibition  should  be  housed 
with  a  pen  of  hens  or  pullets  that  are  not  laying,  or  not  laying 
heavily,  or  if  the  special  quarters  provided  for  fitting  males  for  ex- 
hibition are  large  enough,  from  one  to  three  hens  should  be  kept 
with  each  male.  These  should  be  hens  not  intended  for  exhibition. 
The  best  fitting  pens  are  pens  on  the  floor,  from  four  to  six  feet 
square  ;  in  these,  hens  may  be  kept  with  the  males.  When  movable 
exhibition  coops  or  permanent  coops  of  similar  size  and  construction 
are  used,  it  is  better  not  to  put  more  than  one  bird  of  either  sex  in 
a  coop.  The  pen  on  the  floor  is  in  every  way  the  best,  especially  if 
the  birds  are  to  remain  there  for  some  time.  When  it  is  desirable 
or  necessary  to  handle  the  bird  frequently,  small  coops  are  suitable 
only  for  a  short  period  before  showing.  Females  that  are  being 
fitted  for  exhibition  need  not  be  kept  separate.  Those  to  be  shown 
together  in  pens  should  be  together,  if  possible,  for  some  weeks  be- 
fore being  shown.  In  any  case  the  number,  kept  together  should 
be  small,  not  more  than  six  or  eight,  that  there  may  be  no  crowding 
in  any  way.  Crowding  when  feeding  or  drinking,  or  on  the  roost, 
or  when  dusting,  always  causes  more  or  less  damage  to  plumage, 
and  often  leads  to  quarrels  in  which  combs  and  ear  lobes  are  per- 
manently damaged.  The  clear,  enameled  surface  of  a  white  ear  lobe 
is  spoiled  if  the  lobe  is  injured.  A  small  piece  may  be  taken  from 
a  comb  in  a  fight,  or  a  wattle  torn  and  permanently  damaged.  A 
common  cause  of  injuries  to  combs  is  the  wire  netting  so  much 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY  557 

used  about  poultry  houses  and  yards.  The  absence  of  spikes  on 
many  rose  combs,  and  of  points  on  single  combs,  is  due  to  their 
accidental  removal  by  wire.  To  guard  against  this,  cotton  fish  net- 
ting may  be  used  in  place  of  wire  where  valuable  birds  are  kept. 

It  is  of  prime  importance  that  birds  be  kept  free  from  lice  when 
growing  the  plumage  in  which  they  are  to  be  exhibited.  Lice  not 
only  sap  the  vitality  of  the  birds,  and  so  cause  general  deterioration 
of  the  color  of  the  plumage,  but  some  kinds  gnaw  the  growing 
feather  next  the  skin  as  it  emerges  from  the  sheath,  damaging 
the  web.  It  is  much  better  that  the  birds  have  ample  opportunities 
to  keep  themselves  free  from  lice  than  that  the  poultryman  try  to 
do  it  by  frequent  applications  of  insecticides. 

For  all  clean-legged  birds  a  floor  littered  six  or  eight  inches  deep 
with  clean,  quite  long  oat  straw,  or  with  leaves,  should  be  provided, 
and  unless  it  is  necessary  to  force  feeding  to  complete  growth,  or 
to  make  the  desired  weight  within  the  time  limit,  they  should  be 
fed  principally  on  hard  grains,  in  variety,  scattered  in  this  litter. 
Working  in  it  cleans  and  polishes  both  plumage  and  legs.  Feather- 
legged  fowls,  on  the  other  hand,  must  be  kept  from  scratching 
while  their  exhibition  plumage  is  growing,1  for  if  they  are  not, 
the  foot  feathering  is  likely  to  be  kept  worn  off  quite  close  to  the 
outer  toe.  Floors  for  them  may  be  lightly  littered  with  short  cut 
straw  or  with  hay,  leaves,  or  planer  shavings.  They  should  be 
fed  largely  on  hard  grain.  To  birds  of  any  kind  deficient  in  weight, 
corn  should  be  fed  liberally,  and  some  moist  mash  may  also  be 
given.  Many  exhibitors,  when  preparing  birds  to  be  cooped  by  a 
company  which  feeds  its  special  brands  of  poultry  foods  during  the 
show,  use  those  foods  for  a  part  of  the  ration  for  a  week  or  two  pre- 
ceding the  show,  that  the  birds  may  not  be  affected  by  a  sudden 
change  of  diet. 

Grooming  and  faking.  Artificial  methods  of  conditioning  poultry 
for  exhibition  are  of  two  distinct  classes,  —  legitimate  and  illegiti- 
mate (faking) ;  between  these  two  classes  are  a  number  of  cases  the 
status  of  which  is  not  clear. 

Legitimate  conditioning  (practices  that  are  plainly  right)  includes 
all  those  things  which  the  exhibitor  must  do  to  birds  individually 

1  This  is  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the  loss  of  vitality  in  exhibition  stock 
of  this  general  type. 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

to  have  them  in  their  best  natural  condition  when  shown.  It  is  un- 
questionably proper  for  a  poultry  keeper  to  remove  dead  or  broken 
feathers  so  that  new  ones  may  grow  before  the  bird  is  shown,  to 
feed  to  promote  growth  or  to  increase  weight,  to  wash  a  bird  to 
remove  dirt,  and  to  clean  scaly  legs. 

Illegitimate  methods  (practices  commonly  considered  plainly 
wrong)  are  performing  surgical  operations  to  remedy  defects  of 
head  parts,  removing  feathers  from  shanks  and  plugging  holes 
left  by  the  removal  of  feathers,  splicing  and  trimming  feathers, 
dyeing  or  staining  the  plumage  and  legs,  and  bleaching  white 
plumage  with  chemicals,  —  things  which  materially  alter  conspic- 
uous characters. 

Debatable  methods  of  most  importance  are  removing  defective 
feathers  in  the  soft  plumage,  removing  small  stubs  and  down  from 
smooth-legged  fowls,  and  washing  white  birds  with  weak  chemical 
solutions.  In  the  'same  category,  though  little  discussed,  is  the 
practice,  very  general  among  expert  exhibitors,  of  removing  feathers 
not  conspicuously  defective  (when  their  removal  will  improve  the 
general  color  pattern)  and  of  plucking  main  tail  feathers  (when  the 
new  feathers  will  make  the  tail  of  the  desired  length  and  shape 
at  the  time  the  bird  is  shown),  and  the  removal  of  fine  stubs  and 
down  from  the  legs  and  feet  of  birds  of  clean-legged  varieties. 

For  all  of  these  practices  there  is  a  larger  measure  of  justifica- 
tion than  can  be  found  for  plain  faking,  yet  the  difference  is 
generally  one  of  degree,  not  of  kind  ;  and  in  the  final  analysis  the 
difference  between  legitimate  and  illegitimate  methods  of  fitting 
fowls  for  exhibition  is  tersely  expressed  in  the  cynical  maxim 
"  Faking  is  faking  only  when  it  is  found  out."  Though  not  morally 
beautiful,  that  sentiment  is  materially  correct.  A  rigid  observance 
of  the  rule  that  fowls  must  be  shown  in  "  natural  condition  "  would 
require  a  higher  code  of  ethics  in  the  poultry  show  than  is  found 
anywhere.  Among  experienced  exhibitors  the  use  of  the  debatable 
forms  of  conditioning  is  general. 

Those  whose  scruples  will  not  allow  them  to  follow  custom 
refrain  from  exhibiting,  because  under  a  strict  application  of  the 
rule  the  number  of  specimens  which  can  be  shown  with  any  chance 
of  winning  is  so  small  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  make  an  ex- 
hibit exclusively  of  such  specimens  at  any  place  where  competition 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY  559 

compels  close  scrutiny  of  the  birds.  These  debatable  practices  are 
commonly  used  by  fanciers  who  will  not  use  any  of  the  "  rank  " 
forms  of  faking.  They  are  justified  by  them  on  these  grounds  : 
( i )  that  the  rule  as  it  applies  to  things  not  detectable  is,  and  always 
must  be,  a  dead  letter ;  1  (2)  that  the  rule  is  too  strict,  —  does 
not  give  due  consideration  to  the  difficulties  of  securing  absolute 
conformity  to  type  and  would  too  severely  punish  trivial  faults  ; 
(3)  that  the  practices  do  not  in  any  way  mar  the  appearance  of 
the  specimen,  but  distinctly  improve  it ;  (4)  that  they  consist  (ex- 
cept as  to  washing  white  birds)  in  removing  defects  individually 
so  insignificant  that  their  removal  leaves  no  trace,  and  that  there 
is  no  difference  in  effect  between  washing  white  birds  with  mild 
chemical  solutions  and  washing  them  several  times  with  a  solution 
of  soap  and  water. 

Exhibitors'  practice  in  conditioning.  The  commonly  approved 
rule  of  practice  in  artificial  fitting  of  exhibition  birds  is  to  draw  the 
line  on  things  that  may  be  easily  detected,  or  on  compound  proc- 
esses. The  basis  of  this  rule  is  not  the  desire  to  escape  detection, 
for  every  experienced  exhibitor  assumes  that  every  other  experi- 
enced exhibitor  follows  the  rule.  The  rule  simply  establishes  the 
most  convenient  line  of  division  between  what  is  and  what  is  not 
permissible  in  practice  in  regard  to  the  removal  of  defects  which 
are  in  themselves  alike.  The  rule  is  based  not  on  the  similarity  of 
the  defects  but  on  the  differences  in  the  effects  of  removing  them, 
or  in  methods  of  dealing  with  them  if  allowed  to  remain. 

NOTE.  The  removal,  from  the  body  of  a  white  fowl,  of  forty  or  fifty 
feathers  slightly  ticked  or  splashed  with  black  would  not  perceptibly  affect 
the  outline  of  the  bird,  would  improve  its  appearance,  and  (unless  a  great 
many  of  them  happened  to  be  close  together)  could  not  be  detected  ;  the  re- 
moval of  one  such  feather  from  the  wing  would  at  once  be  apparent.  So  in  a 
black  fowl,  many  feathers  showing  some  white  may  be  removed  from  the  body 
without  the  fact  being  discovered ;  a  gray  tip  on  a  wing  feather  cannot  be 
removed  without  showing  the  loss  or  mutilation  of  the  feather.  It  is  an  im- 
portant feather.  The  defect  might  be  remedied  by  dyeing,  —  by  adding  some- 
thing. This,  by  common  consent,  the  mass  of  exhibitors  refrain  from  doing,  not 
merely  because  the  feather  is  important,  but  because  the  treatment  adds  some- 
thing. The  removal  of  a  few  very  small  stubs  and  bits  of  down  is  considered 

1  It  is  natural  to  ask,  Why,  then,  is  it  not  changed  ?  The  best  answer  is  found  in 
the  great  number  of  provisions  of  municipal  state  and  national  laws  that  are  neither 
enforced  nor  repealed. 


56o  POULTRY  CULTURE 

justifiable  when  removal  alone  will  serve,  but  not  when  the  stubs  are  numerous 
or  so  large  that,  to  conceal  the  fact  of  their  removal,  the  holes  must  be  plugged. 
The  use  of  chemicals  in  washing  birds  is  considered  permissible  if  they  are 
not  of  such  strength  as  to  injure  the  texture  of  the  feather ;  that  is,  they  may 
be  used  in  such  moderate  quantities  as  would  be  safe  in  washing  white  clothes. 
The  removal  of  feathers  not  in  themselves  defective,  to  improve  the  general  pat- 
tern, has  generally  been  considered  unquestionably  allowable  when  the  removal 
of  defective  feathers  is  condoned.  The  regulation  of  the  growth  of  the  tail  to 
bring  the  desired  stage  of  development  at  the  time  when  the  bird  is  to  be 
shown  has  generally  been  regarded  as  belonging  more  to  natural  than  to  artificial 
conditioning,  and  justified  on  the  ground  that  the  object  and  the  result  were 
to  show  the  bird  at  its  best. 

Ethics  of  conditioning.  The  evil  of  the  artificial  manipulation  of 
poultry  for  exhibition,  while  often  serious  in  particular  cases,  is, 
on  the  whole,  much  less  than  one  would  suppose  could  be  the 
case  when  principles  of  importance  are  involved.  -Exhibitors  fol- 
lowing the  same  general  rule  are  practically  competing  on  terms 
of  equality,  for  in  birds  of  any  variety  that  are  nearly  the  same  in 
quality  the  common  removable  faults  are  much  the  same  both  in 
kind  and  in  extent.  A  bird  of  poor  quality  cannot  be  made  good  by 
any  form  of  manipulation,  either  legitimate  or  illegitimate.  Arti- 
ficial conditioning  and  fitting  of  inferior  specimens  is  a  waste  of 
time  and  always  unprofitable.  In  practice  artificial  fitting  is  wholly 
a  matter  of  remedying  relatively  insignificant  defects  in  specimens 
of  extra  good  general  quality. 

The  greater  evil  is  in  the  actual  or  implied  suppression  of  facts 
as  to  the  faults  of  stock  when  the  birds  themselves,  or  eggs  from 
them,  go  into  the  hands  of  other  breeders.  While  to  exhibitors 
whose  competing  birds  are  judged  on  their  general  quality  or  ex- 
cellence it  makes  no  real  difference  what  the  particular  removed 
faults  of  any  kind  may  be,  to  the  breeder  it  may  make  a  great 
deal  of  difference.  He  is  entitled  to  know  what  he  is  buying  and 
to  have  full  opportunity  to  use  his  own  judgment  as  to  the  advisa- 
bility of  buying  stock  with  certain  faults.  This  phase  of  the  question 
comes  properly  in  the  chapter  on  trade  in  pure-bred  poultry,  and 
will  be  discussed  there. 

Details  of  artificial  fitting.  The  removal  of  dead,  broken,  and 
otherwise  defective  feathers  is  the  first  thing  requiring  special 
attention.  Adult  birds  should  be  carefully  examined  for  these  from 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY  561 

two  and  a  half  to  three  months  before  they  are  to  be  exhibited. 
Old  cocks  are  the  most  troublesome  in  respect  to  defective  molting 
and  broken  feathers,  but  heavy-laying  hens  are  sometimes  as  bad. 
A  bird  that,  has  hardly  begun  to  molt  at  this  time  may  as  well  be 
dismissed  from  consideration  for  exhibit  at  the  show  for  which  it 
was  to  be  fitted,  unless  the  show  is  a  very  early  one  at  which  most 
of  the  adults  will  not  be  fully  molted.  Molting  may  sometimes  be 
accelerated  by  starving  for  a  period  and  then  feeding  heavily,  but 
such  practices  are  likely  to  be  in  some  measure  injurious  to  the 
birds,  and  results  are  not  uniform.  If  a  bird  has  partly  molted  but 
has  many  dead  feathers,  they  should  not  be  removed  all  at  once, 
but  taken  a  few  a  day  until  all  are  out.  Defective  feathers  of  all 
kinds  may  be  removed  at  this  time,  even  by  the  most  conscien- 
tious exhibitor,  for  the  same  defects  do  not  always  reappear  in  the 
same  feathers,  and  a  good  feather  may  grow  in  place  of  a  bad  one. 
The  weight  and  condition  of  the  bird  should  also  be  carefully  con- 
sidered, and  its  diet  and  habits  of  life  during  the  conditioning 
period  should  be  adapted  to  getting  it  in  perfect  condition  for  the 
show.  If  it  is  under  weight  it  should  be  fed  all  it  will  stand,  yet 
with  care  to  avoid  overfeeding.  If  it  is  over  weight  it  should  be 
kept  on  a  light  diet.  In  either  case  the  object  should  be  to  avoid 
radical  measures  and  to  bring  it  gradually  to  the  desired  condition. 

The  next  most  important  point  is  to  look  after  the  condition  of 
the  feet,  and  if  they  are  affected  with  scaly  leg,  corns,  or  bumble- 
foot,  to  treat  these  troubles  at  once,  for  they  are  all  slowly  cured, 
and  the  sooner  the  cure  is  effected,  the  better  condition  the  bird 
will  be  in  v/hen  shown.  Foot  troubles  are  not  only  in  themselves 
serious,  but  affect  the  general  condition  and  carriage  of  the  bird. 
Bumblefoot  and  corns  are  sometimes  very  stubborn.  Scaly  leg,  if 
not  too  far  advanced,  is  easily  cured  but  takes  time.  There  may 
be  some  excuse  for  showing  birds  with  the  first  two  troubles,  but 
there  is  none  whatever  for  scaly  leg. 

With  proper  attention  given  to  the  points  mentioned,  no  other 
artificial  fitting  is  necessary  until  just  before  the  show. 

Finishing  touches  in  fitting  birds  for  exhibition.  Final  prepara- 
tion for  exhibition  may  require  only  a  few  Hours  just  before  ship- 
ping, or  it  may  take  a  little  time  daily  for  several  days  or  weeks. 
If  dead  and  broken  feathers  have  been  removed  at  the  right  time, 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

bad  feet  put  in  proper  condition,  and  the  bird  brought  to  the  desired 
weight  and  permitted  to  keep  itself  clean,  the  fitting  of  a  colored 
specimen  consists  only  in  training  it  for  handling  and  for  the 
exhibition  coop,  giving  it  a  thorough  examination  for  removable 
defects,  and  deciding  finally  whether  it  will  be  shown.  White  birds 
must  also  be  washed. 

Training.  Birds  vary  greatly  in  adaptability  to  showing.  Some 
are  easily  handled,  and  even  if  not  handled  at  all  while  growing, 
when  cooped  become  as  docile  in  a  few  days  as  if  they  had  been 
handled  all  their  lives ;  others  never  handle  well,  though  the  ex- 
hibitor works  patiently  with  them  for  weeks.  Some  that  handle 
well  at  home  do  not  take  at  all  kindly  to  showroom  conditions. 
In  general,  however,  fowls  handled  for  a  few  moments  daily  for  a 
week  or  two  will  become  as  docile  as  necessary.  Other  kinds  of 
poultry  do  not  handle  so  well^but  all  kinds,  if  accustomed  to  being 
handled  and  to  being  held  in  various  positions  have,  when  judged, 
an  advantage  over  birds  that  are  not  "  coop  broken."  The  birds 
should  be  trained  to  stand  in  various  positions  in  the  coop,  and 
also  on  a  stand  or  table  outside  of  it.  Particular  attention  should 
be  given  to  the  carriage  of  the  wings  and  tail,  and  if  either  is  un- 
satisfactory, persistent  posing  of  the  bird  with  the  part  adjusted 
as  desired  may  teach  it  to  stand,  when  the  judge  poses  it,  in  the 
attitude  in  which  it  will  show  to  best  advantage. 

Picking.  If  small  removable  defects  are  to  be  removed,  it  is 
done  just  before  the  birds  are  shipped.  Experienced  exhibitors  go 
over  all  birds  very  carefully  for  such  faults,  and  to  remove  un- 
desirable feathers  not  seriously  defective.  Of  the  thoroughness  of 
the  examination  which  the  expert  exhibitor  makes  for  this  class  of 
faults,  the  novice  rarely  has  any  conception.  An  hour  and  a  half 
or  two  hours  is  required  to  pick  a  specimen  that  is  comparatively 
free  from  defective  feathers,  or  in  which  they  are  easily  detected, 
while  some  specimens  take  half  a  day.  Against  such  painstaking 
attention  to  every  detail  of  fitting,  the  novice  who  looks  over  a 
bird  in  a  few  moments  has  no  chance.  The  most  troublesome  of 
all  the  removable  faults  is  down  on  the  shanks  and  between  the 
toes.  No  variety  of  fowl  is  free  from  this  fault.  In  the  angle  be- 
tween the  toes,  and  on  the  upper  side  of  the  foot,  it  often  escapes 
notice,  even  when  a  careful  examination  is  made  of  the  outer  side 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY  563 

of  the  shank.  It  is  quite  well  established,  too,  that  down  may 
develop  and  become  visible  within  from  twelve  to  eighteen  hours 
after  a  thorough  examination  failed  to  find  any.  The  heat  of  the 
showroom  is  supposed  to  be  the  cause  of  such  quick  development 
of  down. 

Cleaning  the  legs  and  feet  to  remove  dirt  in  the  wrinkles  of  the 
skin  and  under  the  edges  of  the  scales  is  always  necessary.  The 
parts  should  be  washed  first  with  castile  soap  and  warm  water, 
scrubbing  them  with  a  toothbrush  or  a  nailbrush.  After  washing, 
any  dirt  showing  under  the  edges  of  the  scales  may  be  removed 
with  the  point  of  a  wooden  toothpick.  The  legs,  when  thoroughly 
cleaned  and  dried,  should  be  well  rubbed  with  cottonseed  oil  or 
sweet  oil,  rubbing  the  oil  in  until  none  is  left  on  the  surface  to 
catch  dust. 

Washing  white  birds  is  now  so  universally  practiced  that  it  is 
useless  to  put  unwashed  white  specimens  in  a  show  unless  the 
exhibitor  is  sure  that  no  well-washed  birds  will  be  there.  White 
birds  to  be  exhibited  should  not  be  washed  until  shortly  before  ship- 
ment. An  exhibitor  who  has  had  no  experience  in  washing  birds 
should  begin  weeks  before  the  show  to  practice  on  cull  specimens, 
and  be  sure  before  he  tries  with  a  good  one  that  he  can  do  the 
work  in  such  a  manner  that  the  specimen  will  not  look  worse  after 
his  washing  than  it  did  before.  There  is  a  knack  in  washing  so  as 
to  thoroughly  cleanse  the  feathers  without  mussing  them  up.  That 
part  of  the  operation  cannot  be  described.  Some  persons  seem 
naturally  to  handle  the  bird  and  maniputate  the  feathers  right ; 
others  never  acquire  the  knack ;  most  are  awkward  at  first,  but  with 
practice  attain  some  skill.  The  washing  must  be  done  in  a  warm 
room  (85°  to  90°),  and  everything  must  be  in  readiness  before  the 
work  begins.  Three  or  four  tubs  are  required.  The  bird  is  first 
thoroughly  soaped  and  lathered  in  a  tub  of  warm  water,  then 
rinsed  in  a  tub  of  lukewarm  water,  then  in  one  of  cold  water,  and 
sometimes  through  another  tub  of  cold  water.  'After  washing,  the 
rinsing  must  remove  every  trace  of  soap.  The  bird  is  dried  in 
the  same  room,  in  a  clean  coop,  with  clean  litter  in  the  bottom, 
the  room  being  gradually  cooled  to  about  70°. 

Shipment  to  shows.  For  shipping  birds  to  shows  many  fanciers 
use  the  ordinary  light  shipping  coops  used  by  poultrymen  for 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

shipping  birds  to  customers.  These  answer  very  well  if  only  a  few 
birds  are  to  be  shipped  each  season.  Exhibitors  who  send  strings 
of  birds  to  a  number  of  shows  each  year  often  have  substantial 
compartment  coops  made,  with  two,  three,  four,  or  more  com- 
partments for  single  birds.  Even  birds  that  are  to  be  shown 
together  are  better  shipped  separately.  The  plumage  is  not  then 
in  danger  of  being  damaged  or  soiled  by  other  birds  in  transit. 
For  a  local  show,  when  the  exhibitor  has  control  of  the  means  of 
transportation,  it  is  well  to  keep  birds  at  home  as  late  as  possible. 
If  they  are  to  be  shipped  by  rail  the  shipment  should  be  timed  to 
arrive  at  the  earliest  hour  at  which  entries  are  received.  Then  if 
there  is  delay,  they  may  still  be  in  time.  If  shipments  are  held 
back  and  timed  to  arrive  at  the  last  moment  at  which  they  will  be 
received,  and  delay  occurs,  they  may  not  reach  the  show  in  time 
to  be  judged  with  their  class. 

Care  of  poultry  at  shows.  An  exhibitor  ought  always  to  look 
after  his  own  birds  at  a  show,  or  engage  some  one  on  whom  he 
can  rely  to  look  after  them.  Show  associations  look  after  exhibits 
in  a  general  way ;  they  feed  and  water  the  birds  impartially,  clean 
the  coops,  and  if  a  bird  is  sick,  remove  it.  Those  birds  attended 
by  owners  or  others  who  will  take  special  care  of  them  have  a 
great  advantage  over  competing  birds  looked  after  by  the  show 
attendants.  An  exhibitor,  or  his  attendant,  should  see  that  his 
birds  are  not  cooped  in  a  draft  or  too  near  steam  pipes.  If  birds 
are  placed  in  such  positions  and  cannot  be  moved,  he  should  take 
proper  measures  to  screen  them  from  heat,  or  from  cold-air  cur- 
rents. So  far  as  the  birds  are  concerned,  a  cold  hall  is  much  better 
than  a  heated  one.  If  the  hall  is  overheated,  or  the  birds  are  in 
too  warm  a  place,  their  combs  may  grow  considerably,  and  if  large, 
lop  badly.  Birds  will  keep  in  much  better  condition  through  a 
long  show  if  not  full  fed  on  grain  and  if  given  a  little  meat  and 
green  stuff  daily.  Most  experienced  exhibitors  prefer  to  feed  their 
own  birds,  and  thus  be  sure  that  they  are  regularly  fed  and  not 
overfed.  A  bird  in  a  coop,  with  nothing  to  do,  will  stuff  itself  with 
food  if  it  has  the  opportunity. 

Returning  birds  from  shows.  If  the  usual  quarters  of  the  poultry 
are  cold,  and  the  showroom  has  been  heated,  it  is  often  better 
(especially  in  very  cold  weather)  to  leave  the  birds  there  for  a  day 


FITTING  AND  EXHIBITING  POULTRY  565 

or  two  with  the  heat  turned  off  than  to  take  them  home  at  once. 
If  the  exhibits  must  be  removed  promptly  at  the  close  of  the  show, 
and  the  weather  is  very  cold,  it  may  be  advisable  to  keep  the  birds 
cooped  in  a  place  where  the  temperature  is  moderate,  for  a  few 
days  before  placing  in  their  regular  quarters.  As  in  the  special 
fitting,  showing,  and  transportation  they  will  usually  have  been 
quite  closely  confined  for  from  one  to  two  weeks,  and  are  likely 
to  be  a  little  soft  and  out  of  condition,  it  is  a  good  plan  to  give 
them  well-littered  scratching  floors,  and  feed  only  hard  grain  for 
a  while.  They  should  be  quarantined  until  sufficient  time  has 
elapsed  for  the  development  of  any  disease  to  which  they  may 
have  been  exposed. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 
JUDGING 

Judging  defined.  Judging  poultry  and  poultry  products  is  esti- 
mating their  value  according  to  commonly  accepted  standards  of 
quality.  The  quality  value  of  a  thing  and  its  money  value  are  not 
correlated,  though  the  prices  of  different  grades  of  goods  (as  of 
eggs,  dressed  poultry,  and  exhibition  stock)  at  any  time  and  place 
should  (and  generally  do)  vary  as  the  qualities  of  the  grades.  What 
are  called  qualities  are  attributes  of  the  thing  itself ;  money  value 
is  determined  by  many  external  factors.  Of  two  fresh  eggs,  iden- 
tical in  every  quality,  one,  in  Kansas  or  Texas,  may  be  worth  two 
cents,  the  other,  in  Boston  or  New  York,  worth  five  cents.  The 
unknown  novice  who  happens  to  produce  a  bird  of  surpassing 
merit  may  congratulate  himself  on  disposing  of  it  for  five,  ten,  or 
fifteen  dollars.  The  same  bird,  in  the  hands  of  a  breeder  of  wide 
reputation,  may  bring  ten  times  as  much.  In  judging  poultry  and 
its  products,  money  value  is  not  considered  at  all,  though  in  selling 
them,  prices  may  be  adjusted  to  quality.  In  judging  pure-bred  poul- 
try for  external  qualities  the  standards  used  are  those  adopted  by 
the  American  Poultry  Association  or,  in  case  of  non- Standard  vari- 
eties, those  adopted  by  specialty  clubs  or  agreed  upon  by  the  breeders. 
In  judging  eggs  and  dressed  poultry  on  exhibition  the  standards 
are  determined  by  market  requirements  and  preferences,  and  are, 
for  the  most  part,  unwritten  standards,  their  specifications,  when 
printed,  being  in  general  terms  and  not  specific  as  to  details,  as 
in  standards  for  fancy  poultry. 

Objects  of  judging.  The  objects  of  judging  are  (i)  to  determine 
the  relative  quality  of  specimens  exhibited  in  competition,  (2)  to 
determine  (with  or  without  competition)  their  approximate  value 
as  compared  with  an  assumed  ideal,  or  perfect,  standard,  and 
(3)  to  give  training  in  observation  and  analysis  of  characters, 
perception  of  types,  etc. 

566 


JUDGING  567 

Methods  of  judging.  For  determination  of  the  relative  general 
quality  of  a  limited  number  of  specimens,  or  of  particular  quality 
in  few  or  many  specimens,  comparison  is  the  natural,  simple  method. 
In  an  exhibition  where  all  that  is  required  is  to  select  and  rank 
the  few  best  specimens  in  each  class  this  method  may  be  sufficient. 
If  classes  are  large  and  competition  close,  it  may  be  so  difficult  to 
decide,  by  observation  alone,  comparisons  involving  many  charac- 
ters, that  the  judge  adopts  some  simple  system  of  marking  birds  as 
he  examines  them,  and  uses  these  records  to  assist  him  in  reach- 
ing his  final  conclusions.  From  this  method  of  marking  for  quality 
is  developed  the  system  of  judging  by  score  card,  now  in  common 
use  for  judging  many  things. 

Scoring  is  merely  a  mode  of  comparison  which  may  be  described 
as  formal  comparison,  with  registration  of  estimated  values  of 
parts  as  compared. 

Whichever  method  is  used,  the  actual  standard  of  comparison  is 
the  perfect  form  of  each  character  as  the  mind  of  the  judge  sees  it. 

In  judging,  each  character  is  considered  separately,  though  an 
expert  judge  may  make  his  observations  so  rapidly  that  he  really 
considers  a  number  of  related  characters  collectively.  When  the 
number  of  particular  characters  is  small,  a  score  card  may  provide 
for  specific  records  of  the  estimate  of  the  value  of  each.  When 
the  number  of  characters  to  be  considered  is  large,  as  it  is  in 
judging  poultry  on  external  points,  a  card  providing  for  specific 
records  of  estimates  of  all  characters  is  too  elaborate  for  ordinary 
use,  and,  to  simplify  the  process  of  recording  the  score,  parts  are 
grouped  in  sections,  and  all  their  qualities  considered  and  their 
values  recorded  together. 

NOTE.  Theoretically,  scoring  (including  comparison  and  the  making  of  the 
record)  consists  in  deducting  from  100,  taken  as  the  symbol  of  perfection,  a 
specific  amount  for  each  fault  noted,  the  difference  between  100  and  the  total 
amount  to  be  deducted  giving  the  score  of  the  specimen. 

On  the  erroneous  assumption  that  the  arbitrary  symbol  100  is  an  expression 
of  actual  value  in  the  thing  judged,  the  sections  in  which  characters  are  grouped 
have  been  assigned  numerical  values,  the  allotments  being  in  every  case  so  dis- 
tributed that  the  aggregate  of  "points"  gives  the  total  100.  Standard  scales 
of  points  are  variable  both  as  to  the  numbers  of  sections  and  as  to  the  numer- 
ical values  allotted  to  them.  The  scales  of  points  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection 
are  arranged  on  the  theory  that  sections  may  differ  in  relative  value  in  the 


568 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


same  class  or  breed,  and  that  corresponding  sections  may  differ  in  value  in 
different  breeds  and  classes.  If  this  principle  is  admitted,  it  opens  the  way 
for  indefinite  variation  and  confusing  multiplicity  in  scales  of  points.  That  is 
exactly  what  has  taken  place.  The  Standard  of  Perfection  specifies  more  than 
twenty  different  scales  of  points.  In  the  decimal  system  of  scoring,  the  num- 
ber of  sections  is  fixed  at  ten,  and  each  allotted  ten  points,  —  the  same  for 
all  kinds,  classes,  and  breeds  of  poultry.  Theoretically  the  decimal  system  is 
very  much  simpler  than  the  other ;  actually  the  two  systems  are  almost  identical 
both  in  process  and  results,  because  the  specific  cuts  are  the  same  and  the 
mathematical  symbol  of  perfection  the  same.  A  slight  difference  in  results  may 
occur  quite  regularly,  because  the  number  of  sections  is  less  in  the  decimal 
system,  and  the  number  of  specific  cuts  is  consequently  less.  This  would  make 
no  difference  if,  where  sections  are  combined  in  the  decimal  system,  the  ordi- 
nary cuts  are  increased  proportionately,  but  with  the  common  practice  of 
making  the  same  specific  cut  for  the  same  estimated  degree  of  defect  in  each 
section,  the  general  result  of  reducing  the  number  of  sections  is  to  reduce  the 
number  and  total  value  of  cuts,  and  so  to  increase  slightly  the  score  of  birds 
judged  by  the  decimal  system. 

On  the  theory  that  scoring  consists  in  deducting,  from  the  number  of  points 
assigned  to  a  section,  the  percentage  of  fault  in  that  section,  it  has  been  gener- 
ally assumed  that  the  scale  of  points  was  a  prime  factor  in  score-card  judging. 
The  fallacy  of  this  becomes  apparent  when  we  turn  from  the  theories  of  scoring 
and  consider  what  it  is  in  fact.  Scoring  consists  simply  in  making  specific  cuts 
for  defects.  The  cuts  usually  made  are  £,  i,  and  i^,  but  occasionally  cuts  of 
2  and,  more  rarely,  2^  and  3  are  made.  That  these  cuts  are  specific  and  do 
not  represent  carefully  computed  percentages  any  one  may  demonstrate  for 
himself  by  taking  a  few  score  cards  of  different  breeds,  made  out  by  a  com- 
petent judge,  and  computing  the  percentages  which  would  give  the  same  specific 
cuts  in  the  corresponding  sections  in  different  varieties.  A  demonstration  of 
this  kind  will  show  very  plainly  that  the  ordinary  cuts,  ^,  I,  i^,  are  simply 
convenient  symbols  for  indicating  three  grades  of  moderate  defects,  and  the 
extraordinary  cuts,  2,  2^,  3,  symbols  for  indicating  grosser  defects. 

Percentage  as  applied  to  things  not  measured  by  an  absolute  standard  is 
merely  a  figure  of  speech.  Its  association  with  the  theory  of  score-card  judging 
has  only  served  to  confuse  those  who  undertake  to  get,  by  a  percentage  system, 
results  which  in  practice  are  reached  by  a  system  of  specific  cuts.  The  scale 
of  points  is  an  absolutely  negligible  factor  in  judging.  Attempts  to  introduce 
it  only  serve  to  confuse. 

Essential  factors  in  score-card  judging.  The  specific  cuts  and 
the  symbol  of  perfection  100  are  the  essential  factors  in  score-card 
judging.  The  use  of  a  score  card  serves  its  purpose  only  when  the 
score  secured  approximately  represents  the  common  expert  estimate 
of  the  general  quality  of  the  specimen.  Scoring,  as  has  been  shown, 
is  not  judging,  but  recording  judgments.  To  score  properly,  that 


JUDGING  569 

is,  in  accordance  with  commonly  accepted  ideas  of  quality,  one 
must  know  first  the  requirements  of  the  standard  used,  and  the 
common  interpretations  of  Standard  specifications,  and  then  what 
is  the  common  practice  in  applying  specific  cuts.  In  the  use  of 
the  score  card  the  practical  question  for  the  novice  is  not,  What 
is  the  percentage  of  a  fault,  and  its  numerical  value  when  computed 
from  the  value  allotted  the  section  in  which  it  appears  ?  but,  What 
is  the  usual  specific  cut  made  for  that  fault  ?  Accuracy  in  score- 
card  judging  consists  .not  in  expertness  in  mathematical  calculations, 
but  in  thorough  observation,  point  by  point,  and  registration  of  the 
appropriate  cut  for  every  fault.  One  may  score  according  to  his 
own  ideas,  just  as  he  may  interpret  the  Standard  and  breed  accord- 
ing to  his  ideas  (and  the  personal  equation  always  has  some  in- 
fluence on  judging),  but  to  judge  so  that  his  scores  will  indicate 
approximately  the  same  quality  as  the  same  scores  by  others,  he 
must  learn  by  observation  and  practice  to  make  the  same  specific 
cuts  for  the  same  faults. 

Advantages  of  score-card  judging.  The  particular  advantages  of 
score-card  judging  are  that  it  is  complete,  both  as  to  individuals 
and  as  to  classes  and  exhibitions,  where  it  is  applied,  and  that  it 
furnishes  a  record  which  indicates  in  a  general  way  the  locations 
and  measures  of  faults.  In  class  instruction  and  drill  in  judging, 
the  use  of  score  cards  is  necessary. 

Limitations  of  the  score  card.  In  the  ordinary  use  of  the  score 
card,  while  specific  cuts  are  made  in  each  section  where  fault  is 
found,  the  symbol  recorded  on  the  card  does  not  identify  the  fault 
farther  than  to  indicate  whether  it  is  a  color  or  a  shape  defect.  The 
conditions  of  competitive  judging  do  not  admit  of  the  use  of  score 
cards  which  specify  the  particular  faults  in  each  section,  but  for 
personal  and  class  use  score  cards  may  be  as  elaborate  as  desired. 
The  forms  in  common  use  for  judging  have  blank  spaces  for 
"  Remarks,"  but  these  are  not  used  systematically,  and  give  space 
for  only  the  briefest  possible  statement.  For  class  and  private  use 
larger  cards  with  more  space  for  descriptions  of  faults  are  sometimes 
used,  also  cards  with  the  common  faults  in  each  section  indicated, 
so  that  in  marking  the  card  the  defect  may  be  checked  with  a  sin- 
gle mark  as  the  specific  cut  is  registered.  Simple  as  this  seems, 
the  use  of  such  a  card  in  the  showroom  almost  doubles  the  time 


570 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


OFFICIAL  SCORE  CARD  OF  THE  AMERICAN  POULTRY 


ASSOCIATION 


Date_ 


Owner_ 


Address. 


Entry  No.. 


Variety^ 
Sex 


Band  No.. 
Weight_ 


SHAPE 

COLOR 

REMARKS 

Weight  or  si/f 

Condition 

Head  and  beak  

r* 

Fyp<« 

Comb 

Wattles  and  ear  lobes 

Nprk 

Winp-s 

Back_ 

Tail 

Breast 

Body  and  fluff 

Legs  and  toes 



*  Hardness  of  feather 

f  Crest  and  heard 

Total  cuts 

Srnrp 

*Applies  to  Games  and  Game  Bantams. 
fApplies  to  crested  breeds. 


Name  of  judge. 
Secretary 


1  By  courtesy  of  the  American  Poultry  Association. 


JUDGING  571 

required  for  judging.  It  is  not  advisable  to  make  score  cards 
more  definitely  record  the  character  of  faults  by  increasing  the 
number  of  sections,  because  to  considerably  increase  the  number 
of  sections  and  still  have  the  birds  make  the  usual  scores  for  their 
quality  would  require  a  revaluation  of  specific  points  too  difficult 
to  work  out  and  apply. 

Use  of  score  cards.  The  arrangement  of  sections  on  a  score 
card  is  devised  to  secure  rapidity  and  thoroughness  of  examination 
of  the  specimens  under  consideration.  Taking  the  official  score  card 
of  the  American  Poultry  Association  for  purpose  of  illustration,  it 
is  noted  that  the  form  provides  first  for  the  general  description  and 
identification  of  the  specimen,  and  for  the  record  of  its  weight.  At 
a  show  which  is  judged  by  score  card  the  birds  are  usually  weighed 
by  officials  or  attendants  before  judging  begins,  and  the  weight  is 
marked  on  the  card  as  given  to  the  judge.1 

The  first  three  sections  on  the  card  are  general  sections.  Sym- 
metry, as  defined  in  the  Standard  of  Perfection,  really  means 
breed  shape,  or  type.  This  section  has  been  the  subject  of  endless 
controversy,  many  judges  insisting  that  to  cut  for  symmetry  after 
having  cut  shape  faults  in  every  section  was  to  punish  such  faults 
twice.  In  common  practice  little  effort  is  made  to  value  this  section 
discriminatingly.  Some  judges  make  a  cut  of  one  half  on  symmetry 
on  every  card  before  looking  at  the  birds  at  all.  Cuts  for  condition 
penalize  an  exhibitor  for  failure  to  properly  fit  his  birds  or  for 
showing  birds  in  any  way  out  of  condition.  These  points  may  be 
judged  without  handling  the  bird.  The  other  sections  are  usually 
marked  in  order,  as  the  bird  is  handled,  though  such  points  as 
shape  of  breast  and  back,  spread  and  carriage  of  tail,  etc.  may 
have  been  noted  by  the  judge  before  he  took  the  bird  in  his  hands. 
An  inexperienced  person  is  not  likely  to  carry  such  points  accu- 
rately in  his  mind,  and  should  place  the  bird  in  proper  position  for 
inspection  before  deciding  on  the  cut  for  each  section.  Examina- 
tion begins  with  the  head,  and  proceeds  section  by  section  —  head 
and  beak,  neck,  wings,  back,  tail,  breast,  body  and  fluff,  legs  and 
toes.  Every  Standard  specification  for  each  section  is  considered, 

1  In  judging  by  comparison  the  judge  is  supposed  to  consider  size  and  weight 
and  to  disqualify  specimens  that  are  under  the  disqualifying  weights,  but  the 
birds  are  not  weighed,  and  the  rule  is  a  dead  letter  in  comparison  shows. 


572 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


THE   DECIMAL  SCORE  CARD1 


jugate  

Rrppd 

Sex 

'Rntrv  No 

Coop  No.                      Weight 

Rine  No. 

i 

c 
'n 

Condition,  weight, 

or  size 

Directions  for 
using  this  card 

n 

0 

.-H 

Comb,  or  crest  and  comb 

VH       (U       3     H~l        (U       CJ 

g 

8  a  js  §  ^§  S- 

U 

Head  and 

fBeak 

I   Eye 

'•»  £  "o  ;§   u  'S 

>    -g     "    ^    -C     w 

adjuncts 

Tf  Ear  lobe 
t  Wattles 

I  »  S  S  R  1 

u 

w 

Neck 

f  Shape 
L  Color 

cu   ^   >  ^       .2 

Back 

r  Shape 

L  Color 

J-  ^    o  ""  ^    ^ 

°     *"'     S     "^     <U     u 

Breast 

f  Shape 
L.  Color 

So  *rt     OT     bJO  "^   'O 

~  6  «  §  g  ^ 

£    .r  a.  c    c  x; 

o 

°   2<   «J   <u    nj  -M 
_r  9«  .8         c    n 

T3     a!     (/)     >     C     " 

B 

Body  and  fluff 

f  Shape 
t  Color 

|  -g  £  1    |  .S 

X 

IH 
CI 

c 

Wings 

f  Shape 
(„  Color 

S  s  J  f  *  | 

rt 

[^ 

*Sj    o    ^    o    ^   "*"* 

r" 

O 

IN 

0 

Tail 

f  Shape 
L  Color 

ff-}|if 

1 

0 
JQ 

Legs  and  toes 

f  Shape 
•^  Plumage 
t  Color 

Q        O        R        ^        V-l        ^ 

H   *§    n          |    C 

C 

X 

Total  defects 

Score 

W 

Judge 


.President 


.Secretary 


1  By  courtesy  of  I.  K.  Felch. 


JUDGING  573 

and  the  total  specific  cut  for  shape  or  color  in  each  section  is  the 
aggregate  of  the  cuts  for  the  faults  of  that  kind  found.1 

If  an  obvious  disqualification  is  noted  as  inspection  begins,  it  is 
not  usual  to  score  that  specimen  in  competition.  Under  other  con- 
ditions scoring  may  be  completed  with  the  disqualification  marked. 
Usually  a  judge,  as  he  examines  each  section,  looks  for  disqualifica- 
tions in  that  section.  A  novice  in  scoring  should  have  before  him 
the  Standard  description  of  the  variety  he  is  judging,  and  should 
be  sure,  before  he  passes  a  section,  that  he  has  duly  considered 
every  specification  under  it.  Omissions  often  cause  faulty  scores 
and  account  for  many  mistakes  in  making  awards  by  the  score  card. 

Ties  are  of  common  occurrence  when  score  cards  are  used,  — 
more  so  than  in  comparison  judging,  because  in  using  the  latter 
methcd  a  judge  who  finds  birds  equal  in  one  or  more  sections  may 
make  his  decision  on  other  sections.  In  comparison  judging,  two 
or  more  birds  are  always  actually  under  consideration.  In  profes- 
sional score-card  judging,  each  bird  is  independently  compared 
with  a  mental  standard.  In  practice  work  an  instructor  with  the 
ideal  in  his  mind  gives  the  appropriate  cuts  for  faults  for  certain 
specimens  or  sections,  and  students  determine  cuts  on  other  speci- 
mens by  comparison  with  these.  In  any  case  scoring  is  sure  to 
give  many  duplicate  scores,  and  often  birds  which  score  alike  may 
be  quite  unlike,  because  the  faults  and  cuts  are  differently  distributed. 
Ties  in  scoring  need  not  be  broken  unless  it  is  necessary  to  de- 
termine rank  for  the  award  of  prizes.  The  common  rule  for  break- 
ing ties  of  scored  birds  is  to  give  the  preference  to  the  specimen 
having  the  least  cuts  on  shape.  If  a  tie  cannot  be  broken  in  this 
way,  comparison  on  any  point  agreed  upon  may  be  made  and  the 
birds  ranked  accordingly.  If  shape  cuts  are  equal,  the  specimen 
nearest  to  the  Standard  weight  may  be  ranked  first. 


1  The  judge  may  not  actually  estimate  and  add  all  cuts.  Except  for  conspicu- 
ous faults  requiring  a  heavy  cut  he  is  more  likely  to  consider  shape  or  color  in 
each  section  as  a  whole,  and  mark  on  his  estimate  of  the  general  quality  of  the 
section.  He  could  cut  all  faults  in  detail  only  by  using  smaller  specific  cuts  than 
£,  and  that  would  require  the  use  of  similar  fractions  all  along  the  line,  and  a  cum- 
bersome increase  of  the  grades  of  quality  noted.  The  Standard  contains  a  list  of 
faults  for  which  specific  cuts  are  recommended,  but  these  are  definite  only  as  to 
such  things  as  mutilations.  In  most  cases  the  range  of  the  cuts  —  \  to  i£,  or 
whatever  it  may  be  —  is  indicated,  and  the  judge  must  decide  which  to  use. 


574  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Uniformity  in  judging.  Estimates  of  quality  can  never  be  uni- 
form, but  general  consistency  in  the  judgment  of  many  persons  is 
possible  if  each  considers  the  various  sections  and  qualities  impar- 
tially. Many  judges  cut  heavily  for  faults  in  some  sections,  lightly 
for  equally  serious  faults  in  others.  The  result  is  to  lead  breeders 
exhibiting  under  those  judges  to  give  special  attention  to  improve- 
ment of  the  sections  they  cut  severely,  and  to  neglect  those  they 
cut  lightly.  In  comparison  judging,  the  partial  judge  gives  the 
preference  to  specimens  with  characters  he  particularly  admires, 
though  on  the  whole  inferior  to  others,  and  the  influence  on  breed- 
ing is  the  same.  Broadly  speaking,  characters  in  an  organism 
judged  on  appearance  must  be  considered  as  of  equal  value.  This 
is  attained  if  the  person  judging  them  has  a  true  appreciation  of 
perfection,  or  of  the  most  desirable  form  of  each  character,  and 
makes  specific  cuts  in  all  sections  consistently,  or,  in  comparison 
judging,  gives  due  consideration  to  every  point. 

Recognition  of  utility  values  in  judging  exhibition  poultry. 
Characters  being  divided  for  convenience  into  sections,  impartial 
consideration  of  sections  will  usually  result  in  estimates  of  value 
not  seriously  open  to  criticism  from  the  practical  poultryman's  point 
of  view.  While,  from  that  point  of  view,  color  and  some  superficial 
points  may  be  of  little  importance,  as  long  as  substantial  qualities 
are  not  neglected,  consideration  of  the  others  should  not  be  con- 
demned, but  rather  encouraged,  for,  as  has  been  said,  observation 
shows  that  few  people  indifferent  to  superficial  beauty  in  poultry 
show  marked  appreciation  of  essential  properties  of  form.  For 
this  reason,  judging  solely  on  utility  points  is  of  doubtful  value 
as  an  aid  to  the  improvement  of  utility  qualities.  When  the  sub- 
ject is  fully  considered,  a  large  proportion  of  what  are  commonly 
called  fancy  points  are  in  a  very  literal  sense  utility  points. 

Judging  poultry  products.  Judging  dressed  poultry  and  eggs  is 
a  much  simpler  process  than  judging  poultry  on  all  external  points. 
In  judging  dressed  poultry  and  eggs  the  number  of  characters, 
qualities,  or  points  to  be  considered  is  small ;  slight  differences  in 
quality  do  not  make  great  differences  in  value,  as  in  high-class 
birds,  and  degrees  of  quality  are  more  readily  appreciated.  While 
score  cards  are  sometimes  used  for  judging  dressed  poultry  and 
eggs,  the  number  of  sections  into  which  a  card  may  appropriately 


JUDGING  575 

be  divided  is  so  small  that  there  is  little  if  any  advantage  in  scoring, 
and  if,  to  develop  a  system  of  scoring,  many  sections  are  made,  the 
process  of  judging  is  complicated  when  it  should  remain  sim- 
ple. The  points  to  be  considered  are  so  few,  and  the  values  so 
apparent,  that  judgment  of  all  is  practically  instantaneous.  Again, 
commercial  grades  of  these  articles  are  established  with  designa- 
tions more  suitable  and  more  generally  intelligible  than  scores 
obtained  as  in  judging  exhibition  poultry.  The  commercial  stand- 
ard of  highest  excellence  is  I,  and  increasing  numerical  value  of 
symbols  indicates  decreasing  quality.  The  rational  method  of 
judging  dressed  poultry  and  eggs  is  to  grade  them  according 
to  market  quality  and  value.  If  then  it  is  desired  to  indicate  the 
rank  of  an  exhibit  in  any  grade,  it -can  be  done  for  the  best  few 
in  the  usual  way,  by  cards  or  ribbons,  or  for  an  entire  class  by 
placing  them  in  order  of  merit.  The  assignment  to  a  known  or 
described  grade  gives  the  approximate  value  as  accurately  as 
scoring  exhibition  poultry. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

THE  TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS 

Textbook  treatment  of  the  trade  in  poultry  for  exhibition  and 
breeding  discusses  it  for  both  buyers  and  sellers,  for  the  beginner 
in  this  line  of  trade  is  interested  in  it  in  both  capacities,  and  is 
usually  in  need  of  information  and  advice  in  both ;  it  is  as  neces- 
sary to  buy  right  as  to  sell  right,  and  more  difficult  to  learn  how. 
Through  inability  to  buy  right  most  novices  lose  from  one  to  three 
years  in  getting  a  good  start  in  breeding  fine  poultry.  It  is  not 
possible  for  any  one  to  wholly  avoid  mistakes,  —  experienced 
breeders  often  make  them,  —  but  any  beginner  may  greatly  reduce 
the  number  of  his  mistakes,  and  save  money  and  time,  by  learning 
something  of  the  general  conditions  of  this  trade,  and  of  the  obliga- 
tions of  buyer  and  seller  in  it,  before  he  begins  to  buy  or  places 
an  order  for  stock,  instead  of  learning  by  repeated  mistakes  how 
not  to  buy.  In  many  of  the  matters  treated  in  this  chapter  it  is 
not  necessary  to  distinctly  specify  the  interests  of  buyer  and  seller, 
for  they  partly  coincide,  and  when  they  do  not,  the  particular  in- 
terest of  each  is  obvious.  Special  statements  of  different  interests 
are  made  wherever  the  conditions  require. 

Composite  character  of  the  trade.  There  are  very  few  instances 
where  staple  food  products  are  also  developed  for  their  aesthetic 
values,  —  none  where  it  is  done  extensively,  as  with  poultry.  In 
consequence  of  this  combination  of  economic  and  aesthetic  elements 
in  the  trade  there  is  more  or  less  conflict  between  the  advocates 
of  utility  and  the  advocates  of  fancy,  and  a  tendency  for  the  ex- 
tremists in  each  cult  to  emphasize  their  devotion  to  their  own 
ideas  by  pointed  disregard  of  those  of  their  opponents.  On  the 
whole,  however,  the  compound  nature  of  values  in  pure-bred  poultry 
is  rightly  appreciated  in  America,  and  while  some  friction  between 
these  interests  is  inevitable,  the  extremist  in  either  direction  has 
little  influence.  The  great  body  of  persons  giving  special  attention 

.  576 


TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS      577 

to  poultry  recognize  beauty,  in  its  way,  as  serviceable  as  utility,  and 
consider  some  combination  of  the  two  desirable. 

Values  in  pure-bred  poultry  and  eggs.  Three  kinds  of  value  are 
distinguished  in  high-class  stock  :  ( I )  food,  or  consumptive,  value  ; 
(2)  breeding,  m  productive,  value  ;  and  (3)  exhibition,  or  cesthetic, 
value.  It  is  usual  to  consider  food  values  as  strictly  real  values, 
and  the  others  as  in  a  measure  fictitious,  and  therefore  less  stable. 
Both  views  are  at  fault. 

The  food  value  of  poultry  and  eggs  as  indicated  in  the  price 
may  be  in  part  an  aesthetic  value.  When  a  consumer  pays  a  pre- 
mium for  white  eggs  over  brown,  or  vice  versa,  the  difference  in 
price  represents  what  he  is  willing  to  pay  to  gratify  a  fancy  (de- 
veloped by  custom)  for  eggs  with  shells  of  a  particular  color.  There 
is  no  difference  in  the  quality  of  the  eggs.  When  he  pays  a  pre- 
mium for  a  particular  color  of  skin  in  poultry,  that  premium  repre- 
sents not  value  in  the  poultry,  but  preference  or  prejudice, 
according  to  the  point  of  view.  When  he  pays  twice  as  much  per 
pound  for  a  squab  broiler  as  for  a  nice  fowl  (or  buys  a  green  duck), 
he  is  not  buying  on  a  basis  of.  actual  nutritive  value,  but  catering 
to  his  appreciation  of  beauty  through  the  sense  of  taste  and  sight, 
just  as  in  paying  a  high  price  for  a  bird  externally  beautiful  he 
caters  to  his  appreciation  of  beauty  perceived  by  the  eye  alone. 

Recognition  of  the  aesthetic  element  in  what  are  commonly  con- 
sidered strictly  economic  values  enables  us  to  better  apprehend  the 
substantial  nature  of  aesthetic  values.  The  physical  needs  of  man 
are  his  primary  needs  ;  normally  they  must  be  satisfied  first.  But 
with  the  physical  wants  satisfied,  his  mental  and  spiritual  nature 
as  insistently  craves  beauty.  Capacity  to  enjoy  beauty,  and  desire 
to  possess  what  is  rare,  lead  men,  according  to  their  means,  to 
willingly  pay  much  more  for  a  beautiful  object  or  creature  than  for 
an  equally  useful  one  lacking  that  quality.  The  laws  of  supply  and 
demand  regulate  the  prices  of  exhibition  poultry  as  constantly  as 
they  do  the  prices  of  market  poultry.  yEsthetic  value  in  the  living 
bird  is  relatively  greater  than  aesthetic  value  in  table  poultry  and 
eggs,  not  only  because  it  is  more  durable  in  the  individual  but 
because  it  may  be  multiplied  through  the  individual.  Even  in  its 
lowest  grade  of  excellence  the  pure-bred  bird  is  more  valuable  than 
the  mongrel,  because  through  it  may  be  reproduced  more  certainly 


578  POULTRY  CULTURE 

those  qualities  which  command  a  premium  in  the  food  markets. 
For  every  grade  of  pure-bred  poultry,  from  the  most  ordinary  breed- 
ing stock  to  the  finest  exhibition  specimens,  there  is  a  demand  at 
a  price  corresponding  to  its  aesthetic  value.  Not  only  so,  but  the 
scale  of  prices  for  the  finest  specimens  is  steadily  rising. 

Profits  from  fancy  poultry.  The  profits  from  pure-bred  poultry 
and  eggs  sold  for  breeding  and  exhibition  are  rarely  greater  and 
often  less  than  those  from  market  poultry.  While  the  scale  of  prices 
is  higher,  the  cost  of  production  is  slightly  greater,  and  the  expense 
of  selling  very  much  greater.  Even  when  pure-bred  stock  of  good 
quality  is  used  to  produce  market  poultry  and  eggs,  and  some  of 
the  best  stock  and  their  eggs  sold  at  fancy  prices,  the  cost  of  sell- 
ing this  stock  may  be  so  great  that  the  net  profit  is  no  greater 
than  if  everything  had  been  sold  at  market  prices.  A  person  with 
an  abundance  of  capital,  which  he  is  willing  to  put  out  on  a  pros- 
pect of  future  returns,  may  do  a  business  of  this  kind  at  a  loss  for 
some  years  and  ultimately  make  it  very  profitable.  Most  persons 
engaging  in  the  business  have  to  begin  in  a  small  way  and  build 
up  slowly.  All  such  should  be  very  careful  not  to  spend  more 
money  to  get  business  than  the  amount  of  stock  they  are  likely 
to  sell  will  warrant.  Building  up  a  trade  in  this  line  is  usually  a 
very  slow  process. 

Peculiarities  of  the  trade.  The  producer  of  market  poultry  and 
eggs,  wherever  located,  is  in  touch  with  an  informal  system  for  the 
distribution  of  his  products  through  which  he  can  at  any  time  dis- 
pose of  his  produce  at  prices  fixed  by  general  market  conditions. 
The  collection  and  distribution  of  his  products  is  done  by  nonpro- 
ducers.  The  trade  organization  is  such  that  a  surplus  at  any  point 
is  removed,  or  a  shortage  relieved  very  quickly,  and  by  the  use  of 
cold  storage  a  general  surplus  at  one  season  is  carried  over  to  a 
season  of  scarcity.  The  trade  in  pure-bred  poultry  and  eggs  is 
largely  direct  from  producer  to  consumer.  A  comparatively  small 
number  of  concerns  are  in  this  line  as  dealers.  Some  breeders, 
who  have  developed  a  demand  for  more  than  they  can  produce, 
buy  to  sell  again.  Most  producers  sell,  or  try  to  sell,  what  they 
produce,  and  a  large  part  of  what  is  distributed  through  dealers  is 
stock  the  producer  had  first  tried  to  sell  direct.  The  business  is 
largely  a  "  mail-order  "  business. 


TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS      579 

In  a  well-established  large  business  of  this  class  the  egg  trade 
may  run  through  nearly  half  the  year  and  sales  of  poultry  be  made 
throughout  the  year,  but  the  bulk  of  the  egg  trade  comes  in  two 
or  three  spring  months,  and  the  bulk  of  the  sales  of  stock  in  two 
or  three  preceding  months.  In  a  new  business,  trade  in  both  lines 
is  quite  closely  limited  to  the  short  periods  of  greatest  demand.  In 
most  cases  this  means  that  a  great  deal  of  stock  (the  best  of  the 
ordinary  good  breeding  stock)  must  be  carried,  at  heavy  expense, 
for  several  months  after  it  is  ready  to  ship,  and  must  then  be  sold 
in  competition  with  later-hatched  stock  of  distinctly  less  breeding 
value.  The  breeder  having  an  established  and  growing  trade  can 
work  off  a  large  part  of  his  early-hatched  stock  in  the  fall  and 
early  winter,  and  can  usually  get  prices  for  the  rest,  when  sold 
later,  which  warrant  his  holding  it. 

Beginners,  as  a  rule,  hold  too  much  stock  for  the  trade  which 
comes  late  in  the  winter,  when  small  poultry  keepers  begin  to  think 
of  mating  breeding  pens,  and  hold  too  many  specimens  of  inferior 
quality.  Many  breeders  make  it  a  rule  to  carry  nothing  over  that 
cannot  be  sold  at  five  dollars  for  males  and  two  dollars  and  fifty 
cents  or  three  dollars  for  females.  A  beginner  with  ordinary  stock 
may  make  his  minimum  prices  somewhat  lower,  but  to  be  on  the 
safe  side  of  profit  he  should  make  it  a  rule  to  sell  no  fancy  stock  for 
less  than  double  its  market  value,  and  to  carry  over  none  (males 
especially)  that  he  cannot  sell  on  that  basis.  Male  birds  sold  for 
market  the  last  of  the  winter  will  often  bring  less  than  if  sold  as 
broilers  the  preceding  summer. 

Confidence  the  basis  of  trade.  Trade  in  this  line  depends,  even 
more  than  usual,  on  the  buyer's  confidence  in  the  seller,  who  is 
usually  the  producer  and  so  is  presumed  to  know  absolutely  the 
merits  and  faults  of  the  goods.  The  purchaser  of  eggs  for  hatch- 
ing has  only  the  seller's  word  for  their  quality.  The  purchaser  of 
breeding  stock  relies  upon  the  seller  to  deal  honestly  with  him  in 
regard  to  removable  faults  and  faults  in  ancestry.  Only  by  secur- 
ing the  confidence  of  customers  is  it  possible  to  retain  their  trade. 
A  dishonest  breeder  may  maintain  himself  in  the  business  by  work- 
ing new  trade,  but  it  is  the  consensus  of  opinion  of  those  in  the 
trade  that  honesty  is  the  best  policy,  —  that  it  costs  less  to  hold 
old  customers  by  square  dealing  than  to  get  new  customers  by 


53o  POULTRY  CULTURE 

advertising.  The  confidence  which  is  the  foundation  of  trade  in  this 
line  pertains  to  the  personality  of  the  breeder  to  such  a  degree  that 
the  "good  will"  of  a  business  is  not  transferable.  It  may  be  bought 
and  sold,  but  cannot  be  delivered. 

Advertising.  To  be  profitable,  advertising  must  be  done  system- 
atically and  with  a  view  to  direct  results.  In  a  line  where  com- 
petition is  keen  and  reputation  of  great  importance,  a  newcomer 
cannot  reasonably  expect  that  his  advertising  will  bring  consider- 
able immediate  returns  ;  but  as  what  it  does  bring  is  all  that  he  will 
get  from  it,1  he  should  not  expend  more  in  advertising  than  the 
amount  of  stock  he  has  to  sell  will  justify,  or  than  he  can  afford  to 
spend  if  the  returns  prove  small.  One  who  has  little  capital  and 
no  experience  in  selling  through  advertising  does  well  to  advertise, 
for  a  season,  in  a  very  modest  way.  At  an  expenditure  of  from  two 
dollars  to  five  dollars  per  m6nth,  according  to  the  style  of  advertis- 
ing and  the  circulation  of  the  paper,  he  can  buy  in  any  of  the 
poultry  papers  space  large  enough  for  an  announcement  which 
may  bring  him  in  a  year  several  hundred  dollars'  worth  of  business. 
It  is  usually  best  for  a  beginner  to  select  a  good  paper  in  his  own 
territory,  and  to  advertise  only  in  that  for  the  first  season.  On  the 
basis  of  that  experience  he  should  be  able  to  decide  whether  to 
go  on  with  this  paper  on  the  same  scale,  or  to  increase,  or  to  try 
another  paper.  Poultry  papers  are  usually  the  best  mediums  for 
advertising  poultry,  but  some  of  the  general  agricultural  papers, 
especially  those  of  large  circulation,  are  excellent  mediums.  News- 
papers, except  when  they  make  a  specialty  of  poultry  advertising, 
generally  give  poor  returns  to  poultry  advertisers.  In  writing  adver- 
tisements one  should  be  plain  and  direct,  stating  just  what  he  has 
to  sell,  the  price,  and  his  address.  In  reading  advertisements  with 
a  view  to  buying,  the  apparently  conflicting  claims  of  advertisers 
are  often  so  confusing  that  the  buyer  in  search  of  the  best  is  at 
a  loss  where  to  buy.  The  real  difficulty  here  is  not  in  the  adver- 
tising but  in  the  attitude  of  the  buyer.  The  stock  of  competing 
breeders  is  usually  about  equal  in  quality.  One  breeder's  stock  may 
be  especially  strong  in  one  character,  another's  in  another.  As 

1  This  is  practically,  not  literally,  correct.  As  poultry  papers  are  often  pre- 
served for  reference,  some  sales  are  made  from  dead  advertisements.  There  is 
also  some  cumulative  value  in  advertising,  but  the  amount  of  this  in  small,  inter- 
mittent advertising  is  practically  negligible. 


TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS      581 

between  such  breeders,  statements  based  on  winnings  and  claims 
of  winnings  are  immaterial  points  and  may  be  ignored.  In  trans- 
actions of  importance  it  is  not  usually  advisable  to  order  direct  from 
an  advertisement.  A  fuller  description  of  the  stock  should  be  se- 
cured, either  from  the  breeder's  circular  or  from  correspondence. 

Correspondence.  In  the  initial  stages  of  the  ordinary  business  of 
this  character,  printed  circulars  are  of  doubtful  value  as  aids  in  selling 
stock.  A  circular  is  effective  for  this  purpose  only  when  it  has  the 
personality  and  force  of  a  letter.  A  circular  which  lacks  these  may 
make  a  favorable  impression,  but  rarely  brings  matters  to  a  conclu- 
sion ;  correspondence  is  still  necessary.  The  novice  will,  as  a  rule, 
find  it  to  his  advantage  to  answer  by  letter  inquiries  received  from 
advertising,  at  sufficient  length  and  with  such  attention  to  details 
as  will  give  the  inquirer  all  the  information  he  needs  in  order  to 
decide  whether  to  buy.  Every  inquiry  should  be  answered  promptly 
and  fully  so  far  as  it  actually  relates  to  business,  but  a  poultry  breeder 
is  under  no  obligation  to  answer  general  inquiries,  such  as  many 
correspondents  make,  not  relating  directly  to  the  transaction,  nor  is 
it  good  policy  to  reply  to  such  inquiries  with  the  idea  that  it  helps 
sales.  Promptness  and  directness  in  replying  to  proper  inquiries 
are  of  the  greatest  importance.  Most  poultrymen  are  slack  in  both 
respects.  Much  of  the  value  of  advertising  may  be  lost  by  not 
taking  proper  care  of  inquiries  as  received.  An  accurate  memo- 
randum of  the  reply  to  each  letter  received  should  be  made  on  it. 
Copies  of  letters  of  special  importance,  whether  relating  to  pur- 
chases or  to  sales  of  stock  and  eggs,  should  be  preserved. 

Terms  and  obligations.  Transactions  in  pure-bred  poultry  and 
eggs  are  mostly  on  a  cash  basis,  —  as  a  mail-order  business  must  be. 
Poultry  is  sometimes  sold  on  approval,  sometimes  on  specifications 
as  contained  in  correspondence.  Transactions  on  approval  afford 
most  protection  to  the  buyer.  If  the  specifications  are  clearly  under- 
stood by  both  sides,  transactions  on  specifications  are  on  a  basis 
more  satisfactory  to  both.  Misunderstandings  on  this  point,  and 
inadequate  statements  by  both  parties,  are  responsible  for  most  of 
the  differences  arising  out  of  transactions  in  poultry  of  this  class. 
When  poultry  is  sold  on  approval  the  buyer  pays  transportation 
charges  one  way,  unless  it  is  specified  that  he  shall  pay  both  ways. 
The  time  given  for  inspection  may  be  from  one  to  three  days, 


5g2  POULTRY  CULTURE 

according  to  agreement.  A  consignee  should  not  receive  from  a 
transportation  company  and  receipt  for  a  shipment  not  in  good  con- 
dition. It  is  assumed  that  the  transportation  company  does  not 
receive  goods  not  in  good  condition  and  properly  packed,  and  the 
receipt  given  the  shipper  is  evidence  that  the  shipment  was  right 
when  received  from  him.  For  damage  in  transit  the  transportation 
company  is  liable.1  A  consignee,  having  accepted  a  shipment  of 
live  poultry  from  a  transportation  company,  cannot  complain  of 
either  the  consignor  or  the  carrier  if  birds  are  found  sick  or  be- 
come sick  shortly  after  receipt.  He  cannot,  after  accepting  them 
from  the  carrier,  return  birds  for  sickness  developing  within  the 
period  he  is  allowed  for  examination.  If  he  does,  the  consignor 
may  properly  refuse  to  accept  them  or  to  refund  the  money. 

When  birds  are  sold  on  specifications  the  buyer  may  insist  on 
receiving  everything  according  to  specifications,  but  cannot  refuse 
to  accept  stock  for  a  fault  not  mentioned  in  the  specifications,  ex- 
cept in  cases  where  a  general  statement  of  quality  has  been  made 
which  is  a  misrepresentation  of  a  specimen  with  such  a  fault.  One 
of  the  most  serious  causes  of  trouble  to  inexperienced  buyers  comes 
from  misunderstanding  the  relations  of  disqualifications  to  value. 
Without  a  disqualifying  fault  anywhere,  a  bird  may  be  so  poor  as 
to  be  worthless  for  either  exhibition  or  breeding  purposes.  Many 
breeders  consider  it  legitimate  to  sell  such  birds  to  people  who 
want  cheap  breeding  stock,  on  the  negative  representation  "  not 
disqualified"  or  "free  from  disqualifications";  the  buyer  should 
be  sure  that  his  order  calls  for  positive  quality.  The  shipper  who 
works  off  cheap  stock  in  this  way  loses  more  than  he  gains. 

Sales  of  eggs  for  hatching  may  be  unconditional  or  on  a  guar- 
anty of  fertility  or  of  per  cent  of  hatch.  Much  dissatisfaction  arises 
in  egg  transactions  because  of  the  poor  appearance  of  eggs  of  high- 
class  stock.  This  cannot  always  be  avoided  when  stock  is  bred 
primarily  for  exhibition  quality.  Those  not  willing  to  accept  that 

1  It  has  been  repeatedly  decided  in  court  that  a  transportation  company  is 
liable  to  the  full  value  of  birds  lost  or  killed  in  transportation,  even  though  the 
shipper  had  signed  the  express  receipt  in  common  use,  limiting  the  liability  of 
the  transportation  company  to  a  small  valuation  per  bird,  but  as  a  rule  claims  for 
damage  in  excess  of  the  amount  specified  in  the  "  release  "  can  only  be  collected 
in  court,  and  in  ordinary  cases  the  trouble  and  expense  of  a  suit  deter  the  shipper 
from  pressing  his  claim. 


TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS      583 

fault  with  exhibition  excellence  should  buy  only  where  they  can 
find  the  combination  they  desire.  A  buyer  cannot  complain  to  a 
seller  for  poor  appearance  of  eggs  unless  eggs  were  represented 
otherwise,  nor  can  a  buyer  refuse  to  accept  a  shipment  of  eggs 
in  a  package  in  good  condition,  or,  because  he  does  not  like  their 
appearance,  discard  them  for  incubation  and  seek  redress  from 
the  shipper.  If  the  package  is  damaged  he  should  refuse  to 
accept  it  from  the  carrier ;  if  the  package  is  not  damaged,  and 
the  eggs  are  sold  under  a  guaranty,  he  must  incubate  them  or 
he  is  not  entitled  to  the  benefit  of  the  guaranty.  When  a  buyer 
refuses  to  accept  a  shipment  from  a  transportation  company,  and 
the  goods  are  returned,  the  seller  should  refund  the  money, 
according  to  terms,  and  adjust  the  matter  with  the  transporta- 
tion company.  He  cannot  protect  himself,  at  the  expense  of  his 
customer,  while  the  matter  is  in  process  of  adjustment  with  the 
transportation  company. 

Scales  of  prices.  In  a  preceding  paragraph  the  statement  was 
made  that  double  the  market  value  was  the  lowest  price  that  should 
be  made  on  this  class  of  poultry  and  eggs.  Unless  this  can  be 
realized,  it  is  better  to  sell  at  market  prices  and  under  conditions 
which  insure  that  neither  stock  nor  eggs  will  be  used  except  for 
food.  This  is  easily  managed  by  selling  poultry  dressed  and  by 
mating  only  hens  actually  needed  for  breeding  purposes.  It  is  not 
good  business  policy  to  sell  breeding  stock  and  eggs  at  a  slight 
advance  over  market  prices,  except  where  they  can  be  sold  in  large 
quantities  and  without  expense  for  advertising,  packing,  etc.  Those 
who  sell  in  small  quantities  at  such  prices  make  little  or  nothing, 
and  hurt  the  trade  both  for  themselves  and  for  others.  A  breeder 
should  not  be  satisfied  to  sell  much  of  his  product  at  the  minimum 
prices  indicated,  or  to  sell  any  of  it  at  such  prices  very  long.  If  he 
cannot,  within  a  few  years,  develop  a  growing  trade  and  reach  the 
usual  prices  for  ordinary  good  breeding  stock  (one  dollar  and  fifty 
cents  and  up  per  thirteen  for  eggs,  and  two  dollars  and  up  for  fowls 
and  ducks,  with  corresponding  prices  for  other  kinds  of  poultry), 
he  may  well  conclude  that  there  is  something  wrong,  —  that  either 
he  has  not  the  right  kind  of  stock,  or  he  is  not  adapted  to  this 
trade.  In  selling  at  usual  prices  for  eggs  and  for  most  of  the 
stock  sold,  the  breeding  stock  used  should  be  of  distinctly  better 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

quality,  and  any  birds  of  quality  equal  to  or  approaching  that  of 
the  breeders  should  be  held  at  prices  which  fairly  represent  their 
value.  A  small  breeder  does  not  often  have  many  of  these  after 
he  has  selected  his  own  breeders ;  hence  he  can  afford  to  hold 
them  until  he  gets  his  price,  even  though  he  has  to  carry  them 
into  the  second  year. 

From  the  time  he  begins  to  sell  stock  a  poultry  breeder  should 
make  a  practice  of  carefully  grading  it  according  to  his  scale  of 
prices.  Many  beginners  selling  at  low  prices  neglect  this  on  the 
ground  that,  as  the  poorest  they  have  are  worth  the  price,  every 
customer  gets  his  money's  worth,  and  if  some  get  more  than  that, 
no  harm  is  done.  To  say  nothing  of  other  aspects  of  the  case,  this 
is  a  serious  mistake  for  a  breeder  to  make,  for  while  the  egg  trade 
must  always  be  something  of  a  lottery,  the  most  important  thing 
in  selling  high-class  birds  is -to  determine  their  money  value  cor- 
rectly and  give  each  customer  good  value  —  full  measure  of  quality 
—  for  the  price,  but  not  the  quality  which  should  bring  a  better 
price.  It  is  the  buyers,  —  the  public,  —  not  the  seller,  that  make 
prices  in  fancy  poultry.  Prices  rise  steadily  because  people  are 
increasingly  willing  to  pay  high  prices  for  fine  specimens.  The 
breeder  always  has  to  consider,  before  he  sells  his  best  bird  at  a 
price,  however  high,  whether  an  inferior  bird  would  suit  that  cus- 
tomer, and  what,  if  he  lets  this  bird  go,  he  will  do  for  a  customer 
willing  to  pay  a  still  higher  price.  Such  conditions  in  a  trade  easily 
lead  to  abuse  of  the  confidence  of  customers  ignorant  of  values, 
but  such  abuses  work  their  own  cure  by  putting  out  of  business 
those  who  practice  them.  The  salesman  in  this  line  must  have 
nice  judgment  of  values,  and  apply  it  honestly ;  he  should  lose  no 
opportunity  to  train  his  judgment.  As  a  novice  he  ought  also  to 
consider  that  he  is  likely  to  make  mistakes ;  and  when  complaints 
are  made  as  to  the  quality  of  the  birds  he  furnishes,  he  should 
consider  them  carefully  and  adjust  any  error  found. 

Packing  and  shipping.  All  poultry  and  eggs  of  this  class  are 
shipped  by  express.  The  question  of  shipping  by  freight  is  agitated 
occasionally,  but  general  conditions  of  freight  traffic  make  the  risk 
too  great. 

Poultry  is  shipped  mostly  in  light  wooden  coops,  tight  all  round 
except  at  the  top,  which  is  slatted.  Coops  of  this  style  may  be 


TRADE  IN  PURE-BRED  POULTRY  AND  EGGS      585 

bought  in  quantity,  in  "knockdown  "  form,  at  very  moderate  prices. 
Formerly  light  boxes  used  for  light,  bulky  groceries  were  much 
used  for  shipping  poultry,  and  some  of  them  were  easily  converted 
into  very  satisfactory  shipping  coops.  Since  paper  cartons  have 
come  into  extensive  use,  the  supply  of  second-hand  boxes  is  limited, 
and  most  breeders  find  it  more  satisfactory,  on  the  whole,  to  use 
the  regulation  coops.  These  are  made  in' several  sizes,  from  single- 
bird  size  up  to  a  size  large  enough  for  a  pen  of  five  medium-to- 
small  fowls.  Valuable  males  should  always  be  shipped  in  single 
coops.  Ordinary  good  males,  not  to  be  exhibited  soon,  may  be 
shipped  in  coops  with  females,  but  there  is  always  some  risk  of 
the  females  injuring  the  comb  or  plumage  of  a  male  when  closely 
confined  with  him  for  a  long  period.  For  a  short  shipment  —  say, 
of  one  day  —  it  is  not  necessary  to  provide  for  feeding  and  water- 
ing in  transit.  For  long  shipments  the  coops  should  have  tin 
drinking  cups  attached  in  a  corner  inside,  and  a  small  bag  of  feed 
should  be  fastened  to  the  coop. 

Eggs.  Small  lots  of  eggs  for  hatching  are  shipped  either  in 
common  flat  splint  baskets,  with  or  without  pasteboard  fillers  or 
boxes,  or  in  specially  constructed  boxes,  with  fillers.  Valuable 
eggs  sold  in  large  quantities  are  usually  packed  in  small  lots,  but 
sometimes  heavy  round  half-bushel  or  bushel  baskets  are  used, 
and  the  eggs  packed  in  excelsior  without  other  filler.  Low-priced 
eggs  in  large  lots  are  often  shipped  in  ordinary  egg  cases  or  in 
cases  of  the  same  kind,  with  a  little  packing  material  to  relieve 
the  jar.  While  it  is  difficult  to  ascertain  the  facts,  comparisons  of 
results  of  hatches  indicate  that  a  jar  which  does  not  break  eggs 
may  seriously  affect  their  hatching,  and  that,  other  things  being 
equal,  carefully  packed  eggs  give  the  best  hatches.  For  packing 
material  in  pasteboard  fillers,  bran,  fine  chaff,  and  broken  cork  are 
used.  The  fillers  or  boxes  are  usually  placed  in  a  basket  or  wooden 
box,  with  a  packing  of  fine  hay  or  excelsior  under,  around,  and 
sometimes  over  them.  For  packing  without  fillers,  in  baskets,  ex- 
celsior alone  may  be  used,  a  thick  layer  being  placed  in  the  bottom 
of  the  basket,  each  egg  wrapped  in  excelsior,  and  enough  of  the 
same  material  placed  between  the  sides  of  the  basket  and  the  eggs, 
and  over  the  eggs,  to  protect  them.  When  the  baskets  used  are  of 
ample  size,  and  sufficient  excelsior  is  used,  this  is  the  best  way  to 


586  POULTRY  CULTURE 

pack  eggs  for  hatching.  If  too  little  excelsior  is  used,  or  the  pack- 
ing is  carelessly  done,  it  is  one  of  the  worst. 

A  novice  in  packing  and  shipping  who  has  no  opportunity  to 
observe  packing  done  by  experts  will  benefit  greatly  by  closely 
observing  how  both  the  poultry  and  the  eggs  that  he  buys  are 
packed,  and  noting  in  eggs  the  results  of  hatches  from  differently 
packed  lots. 

Effect  of  weather  on  shipments.  It  is  not  advisable  to  ship  fine 
poultry  or  eggs  for  hatching  in  either  very  cold  or  very  hot  weather. 
Usually  a  shipper  uses  his  judgment  on  this  point,  and  if  a  pur- 
chaser insists  on  shipment  regardless  of  weather  conditions  the 
purchaser  takes  the  risk  of  damages  or  loss  which  may  occur  as 
a  result.  In  general,  periods  unfavorable  to  the  shipping  of  birds 
and  eggs  are  short,  and  a  few  days'  delay  makes  little  difference, 
except  when  birds  are  to  be  ^shipped  to  a  show  and  must  arrive 
on  a  given  date.  In  that  case  the  shipment  must  be  made  regard- 
less of  weather  conditions,  and  it  is  usually  understood  that  the 
purchaser  takes  the  risks. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The  following  lists  of  books  and  pamphlets  include  only  such  as  are  histori- 
cally valuable  or  have  original  merit,  and  are  published  solely  to  give  information. 
Publications  which  simply  repeat  matters  of  common  knowledge,  and  those  which 
combine  information  with  advertising,  are  omitted,  although  many  of  the  latter 
contain  much  valuable  matter.  Books  marked  with  an  asterisk  are  recommended 
as,  in  the  opinion  of  the  author,  most  desirable  for  those  who  want  a  limited  selec- 
tion of  works  on  poultry  culture  for  collateral  reading  and  for  reference.  The 
dates  of  first  editions  are  given  when  known.  When  a  work  published  previous 
to  1890  has  been  revised  recently,  the  date  of  revision  is  given. 

GENERAL 

Cheap  and  Good  Husbandry.    Markham.    (1614) 

Ornamental  and  Domestic  Poultry.    Dixon  and  Kerr.    (1860) 

Ornamental,  Aquatic,  and  Domestic  Fowl.    Dolan 

Our  Domestic  Fowls.    Martin.    (1847) 

Poultry.    Dickson.    (1838) 

Poultry.    Moubray .    (1815) 

Rare  Prize  and  Domestic  Poultry.    Ferguson  and  Culliford.    (1854) 

The  American  Poulterer's  Companion.    Bement.    (1856) 

The  American  Poultry  Book.    Cocke.    (1843) 

The  Dorking  Fowl.    Baily.    (1851) 

The  History  of  the  Hen  Fever.    Burnham.    (1855) 

The  Husbandrye,  Ordring,  and  Governmente  of  Poultrie,  practiced  by  the 

learnedste  and  suche  as  have  beene  knowne  Skilfullest  in  that  Aarte  in 

our  Tyme.    Mascall.    (1581) 

The  Illustrated  Book  of  Domestic  Poultry.    Doyle.    (1854) 
The  Malay  Fowl  and  Malay  Bantam.    Branford.    (1849) 
The  Poultry  Book.    Bennett.    (1850) 
The  Poultry  Yard.    Boswell.    (1841) 

NOTE.  The  foregoing  belong  to  the  early  period  in  poultry  literature,  the  follow- 
ing to  the  modern  period. 

American  Poultry  Culture.    Sando.    (1908) 

An  Egg  Farm.    Stoddard.    (1888) 

Breeding  and  Management  of  Poultry.    Felch.    (1877) 

Encyclopedia  of  Poultry.    Chanticleer.    (1909) 

Farm  Poultry.    Watson.    (1901) 

587 


588  POULTRY  CULTURE 

First  Lessons  in  Poultry  Keeping.    Robinson.    (1905) 

Fowls  for  Profit.    Johnson.    (1903) 

How  to  keep  Hens  for  Profit.    Valentine.   (1910) 

Making  Poultry  pay.    Powell.    (1907) 

Pleasurable  Poultry  Keeping.    Edward  Brown.    (1893) 

Pocket-Money  Poultry.    Norys.    (1899) 

Possibilities  of  Modern  Poultry  Farming.    Hicks- and  Ewart.    (1909) 

Poultry  Breeding.    Purvis.    (1910) 

Poultry-Craft.    Robinson.    ( 1 899) 

Poultry  Culture.    Felch.    (1889) 

Poultry  Culture  for  Profit.    Sturges.    (1907) 

Poultry  for  the  People.    Corny ns.    (1889) 

Poultry  for  the  Table  and  Market  vs.  Fancy  Fowls.    Tegetmeier.    (1892) 

Poultry  Keeping  as  an  Industry  for  Farmers  and  Cottagers.    Edward  Brown. 

(1891,  1906) 

Poultry  Keeping  in  India.    Tweed.  ^(1903) 
Poultry    Management.     Bell.    Farmers'1   Bulletin    No.    287,   United    States 

Department  of  Agriculture.    (1907) 
Poultry  Management  on  a  Farm.    Palmer.    (1902) 
Practical  Poultry  Raising.    Jull.    Bulletin  No.  26,  Department  of  Agriculture, 

Victoria,  British  Columbia.    (1910) 
Profitable  Poultry  Production.    Kains.    (1910) 
Progressive  Poultry  Culture.    Brigham.    (1908) 
*  Races  of  Domestic  Poultry.    Edward  Brown.    (1906) 
Report  on  the  Poultry  Industry  in  America.    Edward  Brown.    (1906) 
Report  on  the  Poultry  Industry  in  Denmark  and  Sweden.    Edward  Brown. 

(1908) 

Report  on  the  Poultry  Industry  in  Germany.    Edward  Brown.    (1911) 
The  A  B  C  of  Poultry.    Johnstone.    (1906) 
The  Illustrated  Book  of  Poultry.    Wright.    (1874,  1911) 
The  New  Egg  Farm.    Stoddard.    (1900) 
The  Poultry  Book.    Tegetmeier.    (1867) 
The  Poultry  Book.    Weir.    (1903) 
The  Poultry  Manual.    Sturges.    (1909) 

The  Practical  Poultry  Breeder  and  Feeder.    Cook.   (1883,  1901) 
The  Practical  Poultry  Keeper.    Wright.   (1867,  1899) 

SPECIAL  FEATURES,  CLASSES,  AND  BREEDS 
Bantams.    Entwistle.    ( 1 894) 
Bantams  as  a  Hobby.    Proud 
Broilers  and  Roasters.    Robinson.    (1905) 
Capons  and  Caponizing.    Dow.    (1891) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  589 

Capons  and  Caponizing.    Slocum.   Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  452,  United  States 

Department  of  Agriculture.    (1911) 
Domestic  Waterfowl.    Stoddard.    (1885) 

Ducks  and  Geese.    Howard.   Farmers'  Bulletin  No.  64,  United  States  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture.    (1897) 

Ducks  and  Geese.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1900) 

Ducks  and  how  to  make  them  pay.    Cook.    (1895) 

Duck  Culture.    Rankin.   (1897,  1906) 

Eggs  and  Egg  Farms.  Various  authors.  Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.  (1900) 

Fancy  Waterfowl.    Finn.    (1900) 

Game  Fowls.    Cooper.   (1889) 

Hamburgs  Up  to  Date.    Holt 

How  we  make  Ducks  pay.    Weber.    (1906) 

Leghorns.    Hesford.    (1896) 

Minorca  Fowls.    Biggs.    (1893) 

Ornamental  Waterfowl.    Hubbard.   (1888) 

Pheasant  Raising  in  the  United  States.    Oldys.    Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  390, 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.    (1910) 

Points  on  the  Breeding  of  Pheasants.    Sudow 

Private  Game  Preserves  in  the  United  States.  Palmer.  Circular  No.  92,  United 
States  Biological  Survey.    (1910) 

Sussex  Fowls  and  Fattening.    Hurst.    (1905) 

The  Ancona  Fowl.    Briggs 

The  Asiatics.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series 

The  Bantam  Book.    Clough 

The  Bantam  Fowl.    McGrew.    (1899) 

The  Blue  Andalusian.    Silver  Dun 

The  Book  of  the  Hamburgs.    Baum.    (1886) 

The  Book  of  the  Hamburgs.    Hewes.    (1902) 

The  Bro-.vn  Leghorns.    Stoddard.   (1885) 

The  China  Fowl.    Burnham.    (1874) 

The  Cocker.    Sketchley.    (1814) 

The  Houdan  Fowl.    Lee.    (1874) 

The    Improvement  of   the   Farm  Egg.     Lamon    and    Opperman.    Bulletin 
No.  141,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1911) 

The  Langshan  Fowls.    A.  C.  C.  and  C.  W.  G.    (1877) 

The  Leghorns.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1901) 

The  Light  Brahmas.    Stoddard.   (1885) 

The  Minorca  Fowl.    Harrison.    (1893) 

The  Old  English  Game  Fowl.    Atkinson.    (1891) 

The  Orpington  Fowl  and  how  to  breed  it.    Campbell.    (1903) 

The  Orpingtons.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1910) 


POULTRY  CULTURE 

The  Plymouth  Rock.    McGrew.    Bulletin  No.  29,  United  States  Bureau  of 

Animal  Industry.    (1901) 

The  Plymouth  Rocks.  Various  authors.  Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.  (1899) 
The  Rhode  Island  Reds.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series. 

(1910) 

The  Turkey,  Duck,  and  Goose.   Johnson.    (1904) 
The  Waterfowl  Family.    Sanford,  Bishop,  and  Van  Dyke 
The  Wyandotte.    McGrew.   Bulletin  No.  j>/,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal 

Industry.    (1901) 

The  Wyandottes.    Stoddard.   (1885) 

The  Wyandottes.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1899) 
The  Wyandotte  Book.    McGrew.    (1905) 
The  Wyandotte  Fowl.    Field.    (1890) 
The  Wyandotte  Fowl.    Various  authors.    (  1  884) 
Turkeys.    McGrew.    Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  200,  United  States  Department 

of  Agriculture.    (1904) 

Turkeys.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1909) 
Wyandottes.    Hewes.    (1908) 
Wyandottes.   Wallace.   (1891) 

HOUSES  AND  FIXTURES 

A   Gasoline-Heated    Colony    Brooder    House.     Rice    and    Lawry.     Bulletin 

No.  246,  Cornell  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1907) 
Building  Poultry  Houses.  Rice.  No.  16,  Cornell  Reading  Course  for  Farmers. 


Built  and  used  by  Poultrymen.    Hare,  editor.    (1909) 

Construction  of  a  Poultry  House.    Atwood.    Bulletin  No.  130,  West  Virginia 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1911) 
Housing  of  Chickens.  Dryden.  Extension  Bulletin  No.  2,  Oregon  Agricultural 

College.   (1909) 

Low-Cost  Poultry  Houses.    Darrow 
New  Poultry  Appliances.    Rice  and  Lawry.   Bulletin  No.  248,  Cornell  Agricul- 

tural Experiment  Station.    (1907) 
Poultry  Architecture.    Fiske.    (1902) 
Poultry  Architecture.    Stoddard.    (1879) 
Poultry  Houses.    Lane,  Extension  Bulletin  No.  8,  University  of  Minnesota. 

(1910). 

Poultry  Houses  and  Fixtures.    Hunter.    (1907) 
*  Poultry  Houses  and  Fixtures.    Various    authors.    Reliable   Poultry  Journal 

Series.   (1910) 
Poultry-House  Construction  and  its  Influence  on  Domestic  Fowls.    Opperman. 

Bulletin  No.  146,  Maryland  Agricultural  College.    (1910) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  591 

Questions  on  Poultry-House  Construction.    Rice  and  Lawry,  No.  jj,  Cornell 

Reading  Course  for  Farmers.    (  1  907) 
The  Improved  Gasoline-Heated  Colony  Brooder  House.    Rice  and  Rogers. 

Bulletin  No.  227,  Cornell  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.   (1910) 

FOODS  AND   FEEDING 
Analyses  of  Feeding  Stuffs.    Willard  and  others.    Bulletin  No.  138,  Kansas 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
Analyses   of   Miscellaneous   Food   Materials.    Woods  and    Merrill.    Bulletin 

No.  75,   Maine  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1901) 
Breakfast  Foods.    Harcourt  and  Fulmer.    Bulletin  No.  162,  Ontario  Depart- 

ment of  Agriculture.    (1907) 
Cereal   Foods.    Merrill.  Bulletin  No.  if  8,   Maine   Agricultural   Experiment 

Station.    (1905) 
Commercial   Feeding  Stuffs.    Carson  and  Fraps.    Bulletin  No.  127,  Texas 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Commercial   Feeding  Stuffs.    H.  J.  Wheeler  and  others.    Bulletin  No.  94, 

Rhode    Island    Agricultural    Experiment    Station    (1903);    also    Bulletin 

No.  112,  same  (1906) 
Commercial  Feeding  Stuffs  on  the  Connecticut  Market.    Bulletin  No.  145, 

Connecticut  Experiment  Station    (1904);    also    Bulletin   No.  777,    same 


Comparison    of    Four    Methods    of    feeding    Early-Hatched    Pullets.      Rice. 

Bulletin  No.  249,  Cornell  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1907) 
Composition  of  Ontario  Feeding  Stuffs.    Gamble.    Bulletin  No.  138,  Ontario 

Agricultural  College.   (1905) 
Concentrated  Commercial  Feeding  Stuffs.  Jones  and  others.   Bulletin  No.  141, 

Purdue  University  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Condimental  Stock  and  Poultry  Foods.    Lindsey.    Bulletin  No.  106,  Massa- 

chusetts Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1905) 
Cost  of  Egg   Production.     Wing.     Bulletin   No.  204,   Cornell   Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1902) 
Cottonseed  Meal.   Woods  and  Bartlett    Bulletin  No.  775,  Maine  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1905) 
Effect  of  Food  on  Breaking  Strength  of  Bones.    Burnett.    Bulletin  No.  707, 

Nebraska  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
Exact  Calculation  of  Balanced  Rations.    Willard.    Bulletin  No.  775,  Kansas 

Agricultural  College.    (1902) 
Examination    of   Cattle  and    Poultry   Foods.     Lindsey.     Bulletin   No.   112, 

Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1907) 
Fattening  Poultry.    Lee.    Bulletin  No.  140,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal 

Industry.    (1911) 


592  POULTRY  CULTURE 

Feeding  and  Management  of  Poultry  for  Egg  Production.    Jeffrey.    Bulletin 

No.  211,  North  Carolina  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Feeding  and  Rearing  of  Chickens.    Cobb 
Feeding  for  Eggs.    Dryden.    Extension  Bulletin  No.  4,  Oregon  Agricultural 

College.    (1909) 
Feeding  of  Laying  Hens.    Rice.    Bulletin  No.  //,  Cornell  Reading  Course 

for  Farmers.   ( \  903) 

Food  Value  of  a  Pound  of  Milk  Solids.    Beach.    Bulletin  No.  31,  Connecti- 
cut Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1904) 
Food  Value  of  Corn  and  Corn  Products.    Woods.    Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  298, 

United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.    (1907) 
Gluten   Feeds  and   Meals.     Hills.     Bulletin  No.  48,  Vermont  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1895) 
Inspection   of   Commercial    Feeding   Stuffs.     Smith   and   Perkins.     Bulletin 

No.  136,  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1911) 
Investigation  Regarding  Succulence.    Robison.    Bulletin  No.  32,  Michigan 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1905) 
Molasses  and  Molasses  Foods  for  Farm  Stock.    Lindsey,  Holland,  and  Smith. 

Bulletin  No.  118,  Massachusetts  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1907) 
Poultry  Fattening.    Edward  Brown.    (1895) 
Poultry  Feeding  and  Proprietary  Feeding  Stuffs.    Jaffa.    Bulletin  No.  164, 

California  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (^905) 
Principles  and  Practice  of  Stock  Feeding.    Hills.    Bulletin  No.  8f,  Vermont 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1900) 
Seven  Methods  of  Feeding  Young   Chickens.     Rice  and  Nixon.     Bulletin 

No.  282,  Cornell  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Sugar  Beets.    Willard  and  Clothier.    Bulletin  No.  103,  Kansas  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1901) 
The  Computation  of  Rations  for  Farm  Animals  by  the  Use  of  Energy  Values. 

Armsby.    Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  346,  United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture.   ( 1 909) 
The  Mineral  Elements  in  Animal  Nutrition.    Forbes.    Bulletin  No.  201,  Ohio 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.  ( 1 909) 

HATCHING  AND  REARING 

Artificial  Incubating  and  Brooding.  Various  authors.  Reliable  Poultry  Jour- 
nal Series.  (1898) 

Chicken  Rearing  and  the  Management  of  Incubators.    Johnson.    (1908) 

Hydro-Incubation.    Christy 

Incubating  and  Brooding  Chickens.  Dryden.  Btilletin  No.  6,  Oregon  Agri- 
cultural College.  (1910) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  593 

Incubation  and  Brooding.    Jull.    Bulletin  No.  27,  Department  of  Agriculture, 

Victoria,  British  Columbia.    (1910) 
Incubation  and  its  Natural  Laws.    Cyphers.    (1894) 
Mortality  of  Incubator  Chicks.    Field,  Marshall,  and  Warren,  Bulletin  No.  6f, 

Rhode  Island  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.   (1899) 
Practical  Artificial  Incubation.    Ferris.    (1880) 

Raising  Chickens.   Rice.  No.  19,  Cornell  Reading  Course  for  Farmers.  (1904) 
Raising   Chicks  Artificially.     Stewart  and  Atwood.     Bulletin   No.  98,  West 

Virginia  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1906) 

The  Art  of  hatching  and  bringing  up  Domestic  Fowls.    De  Reaumur.    (1750) 
The  Chick  Book.    Various  authors.    Reliable  Poultry  Journal  Series.    (1905) 
The  Eccaleobion.    Bucknell 

DISEASES 

A  Manu?l  of  Poultry  Diseases.    Vale 

A  Nodular  Taeniasis  in  Fowls.    Moore.    Circular  No.  j>,  United  States  Bureau 

of  Animal  Industry.    (1895) 
A  Quail  Disease  in  the  United  States.    Moore.    Circular  No.  109,  United 

States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1907) 
A  Tapeworm  Disease  of  Fowls.    Gage  and  Opperman.    Bulletin  No.  129, 

Maryland  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
Apoplectiform  Septicaemia  in  Chickens.    Norgaard.    Bulletin  No.  36,  United 

States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1902) 
Bacillary  White  Diarrhea  of  Young  Chicks.    Rettger  and  Stoneburn.    Bulletin 

No.  60,  Storrs  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
Bacillary  White  Diarrhea  of  Young  Chicks.    (Second  Report.)    Rettger  and 

Stoneburn.  Bulletin  No.  68,  Storrs  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.  (191 1) 
Blackhead  in  Turkeys.    Hadley  and  Kirkpatrick.    Bulletin  No.  141,  Rhode 

Island  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Chickens  and  their  Diseases  in  Hawaii.     Sedgwick,  Bulletin  No.  /,  Hawaii 

Experiment  Station.    (1901) 

Diseases  of  Chickens.    Pernot.    Bulletin  No.  5,  Extension  Department,  Ore- 
gon Agricultural  College.    (1910) 
Diseases  of  Domestic  Poultry.    Burnham.    (1876) 
Diseases  of  Fowls.    Bradshaw.    Farmers^  Bulletin  No.  /j,   Department  of 

Agriculture,  New  South  Wales.    (1909) 
Fowl  Cholera  and  Methods  of  combating  it.     Hadley.     Bulletin  No.  144, 

Rhode  Island  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Parasitic  Diseases  of  Poultry.    Theobald 

Poultry  Diseases  and  their  Treatment.    Pearl,  Surface,  and  Curtis.    (1911) 
Roup.    Harrison  and  Streit.    Bulletin  No.  125,  Ontario  Agricultural  College. 

(1902) 


594  POULTRY  CULTURE 

*The  Common-Sense  Poultry  Doctor.    Robinson.    (1907) 
The  Diseases  of  Poultry.    Hill 
The  Diseases  of  Poultry.    Salmon.    (1899) 
The  Farm-Poultry  Doctor.    Sanborn.   (1896) 
The  Poultry  Doctor.    Lehman.    (1911) 

White  Diarrhea  of  Chicks,  with  Notes  on  Coccidiosis  in  Birds.    Morse.    Circu- 
lar No.  128,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1908) 


EXPERIMENT  AND  RESEARCH 

A  Record  of  600   Hens.     Stewart  and  Atwood.     Bulletin  No.  7/5,  West 

Virginia  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
Analyses  of  Eggs.    Willard  and  Shaw.   Bulletin  No.  139,  Kansas  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
Appliances  and  Methods  for  Pedigree  Poultry  Breeding.    Pearl  and  Surface. 

Bulletin  No.  IJQ,  Maine  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
Ash  and  Grit  for  Growing  Chicks.    F.  H.  Hall  and  W.  P.  Wheeler.    Bulletin 

No.  242,  New  York  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1903) 
Bacteriology  of  the  Drawn-Poultry  Question.    Higley 
Biology  of  Poultry  Keeping.    Evans.    (1899) 
Data  on  the   Relative   Conspicuousness  of  Barred  and   Self-Colored  Fowls. 

Pearl,  American  Naturalist.    (February,  1911) 

Data  on  Variation  in  the  Comb  of  the  Domestic  Fowl.    Pearl  and  Pearl,  Bio- 
met  rika.   (March,  1909) 
Digestion  Experiments  with  Poultry.     E.  W.  Brown,  Bulletin  No.  56,  United 

States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1904) 
Experiments  with  Poultry.    W.  P.  Wheeler.    Summary  of  investigations  at  the 

New  York  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
Fattening  Chickens.   Graham.   Bulletin  No.  /J/,  Ontario  Agricultural  College, 

(1906) 

Feeding  Experiments.    W.  P.  Wheeler,  Bulletin  No.  126,  New  York  Experi- 
ment Station.    (1897) 
How  Much  Meat  shall  Ducks  eat?     F.  H.  Hall  and  W.  P.  Wheeler,  Bulletin 

No.  259,  New  York  Experiment  Station.    (1904) 
Importance  of  Constitutional  Vigor  in  the  Breeding  of  Poultry.    Rice  and 

Rogers.    No.  45,  Cornell  Reading  Course  for  Farmers.    (1909) 
Incubation    of    Chickens.    W.   R.  Graham   and  others.    Bulletin  No.  163, 

Ontario  Department  of  Agriculture.    (1908) 
Incubator    Experiments.    Dryden.   Bulletin    No.    100,    Oregon   Agricultural 

College.    (1908) 
Infection  and  Preservation  of  Eggs.    Lamson.    Bulletin  No.  55,  Connecticut 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


595 


Inheritance  in  Blood  Lines,  with  Special  Reference  to  the  2oo-Egg  Hen.   Pearl. 

American  Breeders'  Association.    Vol.  VI.    (1910) 
Inheritance    in    Poultry.     C.    B.    Davenport.     The    Carnegie    Institution    of 

Washington.    (1906) 
Inheritance   of   Characteristics   in  Domestic  Fowl.     C.    B.   Davenport.    The 

Carnegie  Institution  of  Washington.    (1909) 
Inheritance    of   Fecundity.    Pearl    and    Surface.    Bulletin   No.    166,    Maine 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
Loss  of  Weight  in   Eggs  in   Incubation.     Stewart  and  Atwood.     Bulletin 

No.  /j>,  West  Virginia  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1901) 
Mash  or  Whole  Grain.    Stewart  and  Atwood.    Bulletin  No.  88,  West  Virginia 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1903) 

Notes  on  the  Osteology  and  Mycology  of  the  Domestic  Fowl.    Vaughn 
Poultry  as  Food.   Atwater,  Farmers'1  Bulletin  No.  182,  United  States  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture.    (1903) 
Poultry  Experiments.     Mairs.    Bulletin  No.  $7,    Pennsylvania  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.   (1908) 
Poultry  Work  at    the   Maine   Station.    Woods.     Bulletin  No.   J^7i    Maine 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
*  Seasonal  Distribution   of   Egg   Production.     Pearl  and  Surface.     Bulletin 

No.  no,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1911) 
Some  Observations  and  Experiments  on  the  Natural  and  Artificial  Incubation 

of  the  Egg  of  the  Common  Fowl.    Albert  C.  Eycleshymer,  in  the  Biological 

Bulletin.    (May,  1907) 
Studies  on  Hybrid  Poultry.     Pearl  and  Surface.    Bulletin  No.  179,  Maine 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
Studies  on  the  Physiology  of  Reproduction  in  the  Domestic  Fowl.    Pearl  and 

Curtis,  in  the  Biological  Bulletin.    (September,  1909) 
Studies  with   Sudan   III.     In    Metabolism   and    Inheritance.     Riddle,  in  the 

Journal  of  Experimental  Zoology.    (March,  1910) 
The  Chemistry  of  Flesh.    A  Preliminary  Study  of  the  Effects  of  Cold  Storage 

upon  Beef,  Veal,  and  Poultry.     Emmett  and  Grindley,  in  the  Journal  of 

Industrial  and  Engineering  Chemistry.   (July  and  August,  1909) 
The  Development  of  the  Chick.    F.  R.  Lillie.    (1908) 
The  Fertility  and  Hatching  of  Eggs.    Pearl  and  Surface.    Bulletin  No.  168, 

Maine  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
The  Ligaments   of  the   Oviduct  of  the   Domestic  Fowl.     Curtis.     Bulletin 

No.  176,  Maine  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1910) 
The  Molting  of  Fowls.    Rice,  Nixon,  and  Rogers.    Bulletin  No.  238,  Cornell 

Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1908) 
What  Chemistry  finds  in  Foods.    Hall,  Jordan,  and  Jenter.    Bulletin  No.  166, 

New  York  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.    (1899) 


596  POULTRY  CULTURE 

MARKETING 

*  How  to  kill  and  bleed  Market  Poultry.     Pennington  and  Betts.    Circular 
No.  61,  Bureau  of  Chemistry,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 
(1910) 

Marketing  Eggs  through  the  Creamery.    Slocum,  Farmers'1  Bulletin,  No.  443, 

United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.    (1911) 
Marketing   Poultry  Products.     Rice.    No.  26,   Cornell  Reading  Course  for 

Farmers.   (1904) 
Studies  of  Poultry  from  the  Farm  to  the  Consumer.    Pennington.     Circular 

No.  64,  Bureau  of  Chemistry,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture 
The  Egg  Trade  of  the  United  States.    Hastings.     Circular  ATo.  140.  United 

States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1909) 
The  Marketing  of  Eggs.    Phillips.    Bulletin  No.  162.   Kansas  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.    (1909) 
The  Poultry  and  Egg  Industry  of  Leading  European   Countries.     Fossum, 

Bulletin  No.  dj,  United  States  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry.    (1904) 

*  The  Poultry  Packer's  Guide.    Bickel.    (1909) 

EXHIBITING  AND  JUDGING 

Poultry  for  Prizes  and  Profit.    Long.    (1872,  1909) 

Preparing  Fowls  for  Exhibition.    Cobb 

*The  American  Standard  of  Perfection.    The  American  Poultry  Association. 

(1874,  1910) 
The  Philosophy  of  Judging.    Felch,  Babcock,  and  Lee.    (1889) 

MISCELLANEOUS  • 

Farm   Drainage.     Stewart.     Extension   Bulletin   No.  13,   University  Farm, 

St.  Paul,  Minn. 
How  to  destroy  English  Sparrows.    Dearborn.    Farmers'  Bulletin  No.  383, 

United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.    (1910) 
How  to  destroy  Rats.     Lantz.    Farmers"   Bulletin   No.  369,  United  States 

Department  of  Agriculture.    (1909) 
The  Cement  Workers'  Handbook.    Baker.    (1906) 
The  Preservation  of  Hen  Manure.    In  Bulletin  No.  98,  Maine  Agricultural 

Experiment  Station.   (1903) 


INDEX  TO  TEXT  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS 


With  this  index  is  included  a  glossary  of  technical  terms  not  denned  in  the  text.    All 
numerals  refer  to  pages 


Abdomen,  the  under  part  of  the  body 
from  the  rear  point  of  the  breastbone 
to  the  vent 

Adaptability  of  poultry,  75,  476 

Advertising  for  fancy  poultry  trade, 
58o 

Advertising   value   of   winning   prizes, 

536 

^Esthetic  values  in  poultry,  .577 

Age,  effect  of,  on  egg  production,  300  ; 
relation  of,  to  breeding  value,  476,  487 

Agricultural  poultry  exhibits,  535 

Agriculture,  relations  of,  to  poultry  cul- 
ture, n,  28 

Air  cell  in  egg,  262 

Albumin,  238,  milk,  201 

Alfalfa,  195 

Alfilaria,  195 

Alternate  inheritance,  467 

Alternating  yards,  98 

American  Dominiques,  14,  395 ;  illus- 
trated, 396,  518 

American  Poultry  Association  classifi- 
cation of  poultry,  note  on,  346 

American  Poultry  Association  score 
card,  570 

American  types,  16,  397 

Anconas,  illustrated,  360 

Andalusians,  illustrated,  367 

Animal  foods,  kinds  of,  secured  under 
natural  conditions,  176 

Antiquity  of  artificial  methods,  241  ;  of 
poultry  culture,  12 

A.  O.  V.  (Any  Other  Variety)  classes, 
548 

Apples,  198 

Appliances,  155;  models  of,  for  exhibi- 
tion, 552 

Area  of  yards,  97 

Artichokes,  197 

Artificial  brooding,  temperature  in,  280 

Artificial  fitting  of  poultry  for  exhibi- 
tion, 560 

Artificial  incubation,  241,  253 ;  antiq- 
uity of,  17  ;  selection  of  eggs  for, 
257  ;  temperature  in,  241 

Artificial  selection,  478 


Aseels,  illustrated,  347 

Asexual  reproduction,  459 

Ash,  the  noncombustible  part  of  feed- 
ing stuffs,  consisting  principally  of 
mineral  matter,  178 

Asiatic  meat-type  fowls,  description  of, 
387  ;  divisions  of,  389 

Atavism,  467 

Back,  the  upper  side  of  the  body  (in  the 
fancier's  terminology  particularly  the 
middle  of  the  back),  the  fore  part 
being  concealed  by  the  neck  hackle 
and  the  rear  part  being  called,  in  the 
male,  the  saddle,  and  in  the  female 
(if  well  developed),  the  cushion.  The 
apparent  length  of  the  back  depends 
much  upon  the  length  and  texture  of 
the  plumage 

Back-yard  poultry  plants,  illustrated, 
26,32 

Balanced  ration,  206 

Balancing,  characters  in  breeding,  484  ; 
exhibits  at  shows,  549 

Bantam,  Game,  resemblance  of  the,  to 
jungle  fowl,  344 

Bantams,  description  and  illustrations 
of,  424 

Bar,  a  band  or  stripe  across  a  feather 
or  across  a  number  of  feathers,  as 
the  wing  bar.  Very  narrow  barring 
is  sometimes  called  penciling 

Barley,  188 

Barn-door  fowl.  See  Barnyard  fowl 

Barnyard  fowl,  a  common  fowl,  a  mon- 
grel 

Barred  color  patterns,  early  varieties  of, 
395 ;  mating,  518 

Barrel  coops,  104;  illustrated,  105 

Barring,  purple,  in  black  fowls,  528 

Baskets  for  shipping  eggs  for  hatching, 

585 
Beak  (the  jaws  of  gallinaceous  birds), 

structure    of,    in    different   kinds    of 

poultry,  175 
Bean,  the  small  knob  at  the  tip  of  the 

upper  mandible  of  the  waterfowl 


597 


598 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Beard,  a  tuft  or  fringe  of  feathers  at 
the  throat,  sometimes  extending  to 
the  ears 

Beef  scrap,  199 

Beet  molasses 

Beet  pulp,  197 

Beet  tops,  195 

Belgian  meat  types,  380 

Bib,  a  biblike  patch  of  color  on  the 
breast,  as  in  Blue  Swedish  Ducks 

Bill,  the  jaws  of  waterfowl 

Bird,  denned,  5 

Black  color,  faults  of,  527  ;  mating  to 
produce,  527 ;  occurrence  of,  in 
white  birds,  525 

Blackhead,  a  form  of  liver  disease  in 
turkeys,  in  which  the  skin  of  the  head 
and  neck  turns  very  dark  purple 

Black-red  color  pattern  in  fowls,  de- 
scription of  the,  357 ;  mating,  507 ; 
modified  forms  of,  512 

Black-red  type,  undercolor  in  the^  530 

Black  rot,  a  gangrenous  disease  of  the 
comb 

Black  Spanish,  366 

Black  Sumatras,  533 

Black-white  color  pattern  in  /owls,  de- 
scription of  the,  361 

Black- white  color  types,  mating,  518  ; 
undercolor  in,  533 

Blade,  the  broad  rear  section  of  a  single 
comb 

Blopd  meal  and  dried  blood,  199 

Body,  the  trunk.  In  Standard  nomen- 
clature, that  section  of  the  body  be- 
tween the  breast  and  the  fluff.  See 
Breast 

Body  and  germ,  relations  of,  459 

Bone  cutters,  169 

Bones,  dry,  203  ;  green,  199 

Booted,  having  feathers  on  the  feet 
and  shanks 

Boston,  first  poultry  show  at,  18,  535 

Boswell,  description  of  early  poultry 
houses,  1 08 

Bourbourg  Fowl,  423 

Boxes  for  shipping  dressed  poultry, 
322 ;  for  shipping  eggs,  327 ;  for 
shipping  eggs  for  hatching,  585 

Boxing,  a  term  used  by  game  fanciers 
to  describe  a  beak  with  upper  man- 
dible shutting  closely  over  the  lower 
one 

Braekel,  383  ;  illustrated,  384 

Brahmas,  391  ;  Dark,  described,  392 ; 
illustrated,  392,  493;  Light,  de- 
scribed, 393;  illustrated,  393,  495, 
519 


Brahmaputras,  385 

Bran,  buckwheat,  191  ;  corn,  187  ;  oat, 
188  :  rice,  192;  wheat,  185 

Brassiness,  525 

Brassy,  yellowish,  applied  especially  to 
white  plumage  with  a  pronounced 
yellow  tinge 

Breakdown,  a  condition  of  partial  pa- 
ralysis in  which  a  bird  is  unable  to 
stand  in  a  natural,  upright  position 

Breast,  crooked,  341 

Breast,  the  front  of  the  body  of  a  bird, 
the  depth  being  measured  from  the 
neck  to  the  forward  point  of  the 
keel  bone,  the  width  from  shoulder 
to  shoulder  of  the  folded  wings, 
and  the  fullness  by  the  curvature  of 
these  lines 

Breda,  424 

Breed,  defined 

Breeder,  work  of  the,  475 

Breeding,  conditions  of  practice  in,  2  ; 
improvement  of  egg  production  by, 
492 ;  rule  of  good  practice  in,  486 

Breeding  quality,  effect  of  age  upon,  487 

Breeds,  divisions  and  relations  of,  70 

Breeds,  influence  of  improved,  15; 
laying,  353 

Bresse,  380 

Brewer's  grains,  189 

Bricked-up  set-kettle,  illustrated,  39 

Broilers,  description  of,  303  ;  growing, 
43  ;  packing,  323 

Bronchitis,  analogous  to  same  disease 
in  human  beings 

Brooder  houses,  151  ;  illustrated,  42, 
47,  52,  124,  149,  151-152,  276 

Brooders,  coops  for  indoor,  132  ;  kinds 
of,  277 

Broodiness,  242  ;  relation  of,  to  egg 
production,  297 

Brooding  temperatures,  275,  280 

Broom-corn  seed,  192 

Brown  eggs,  326 

Buckeye,  description  and  illustrations 
of,  416;  compared  with  other  breeds 
of  its  class,  421 

Bucks  County  Fowls,  397 

Buckwheat,  191 

Buff  color,  description  of,  397  ;  mating 
for,  513 

Buff-colored  birds,  undercolor  in,  532 

Bumblefoot,  a  foot  having  a  corn  or 
an  abscess  which  causes  lameness, 
340 

Buttermilk,  201 

Buying  poultry  on  approval,  581 

By-products,  use  of,  as  poultry  foods,  1 78 


INDEX 


599 


Cabbage,  195 

Campines,  370;  illustrated,  371 

Candling,  testing  eggs  before  a  light 
to  determine  their  fitness  for  food 
purposes 

Canker,  a  term  applied  indiscriminately 
to  catarrhal  ulcers,  cheesy  mucus 
deposits,  diphtheritic  patches,  or  any 
whitish  or  yellowish  matter  appear- 
ing about  the  eyes,  nostrils,  or  mouth, 
or  in  the  mouth  or  throat  of  a  bird 

Cap,  caplike  dark  markings  on  the 
head,  as  in  Indian  Runner  Ducks 

Cape,  in  fowls  of  the  ermine  color 
pattern  the  semicircular  patch  of 
black-and-white  feathers  between 
the  shoulders,  concealed  by  the  long 
hackle  feathers  when  the  bird  stands 
erect 

Capital,  relation  of,  to  operations,  27 

Caponizing,  309 

Car  and  track  for  distributing  food, 
illustrated,  50 

Carbohydrates,  179 

Carts  for  poultry  work,  37,  38,  56,  170 

Case  count,  count  by  the  case,  without 
inspection,  grading,  and  deduction 
for  inferior  and  bad  eggs.  See  Loss-off 

Castilian  fowls,  363 

Catarrh,  340 

Cats,  exhibits  of,  at  poultry  shows,  550  ; 
protection  of  poultry  from,  274,  282 

Causes  of  disease,  338 

Census  of  1840,  poultry  statistics  in,  24 

Center,  in  descriptions  of  plumage,  the 
open  ground  of  a  single-laced  feather 

Change,  effect  of,  on  egg  production, 

295 

Characters,  balancing  of,  in  breeding, 
484;  correlation  of,  471;  essential, 
482  ;  latent,  467  ;  present,  467  ;  rela- 
tive value  of,  in  breeding,  483 ;  sub- 
stantial, 482  ;  superficial,  483 

Charcoal,  203 

Check,  the  trade  term  for  a  cracked 
egg  not  leaking  f 

Cheek,  the  side  of  the  heaotf particu- 
larly of  a  plain-feathered  head,  as  in 
ducks  and  geese 

Cheese,  201 

Chick,  development  of  the,  in  incuba- 
tion, illustrated,  261  ;  helping,  out  of 
shell,  252 

Chicken,  a  young  land  bird  of  either 
sex ;  applied  mostly  when  the  sex 
cannot  be  distinguished  or  is  imma- 
terial 

Chicken  corn,  195 


Chicken  pox,  a  skin  disease  of  the 
head  characterized  by  ulcerous  warts, 

340 

Chilled  eggs,  130,  250 

China,  importations  of  fowls  from,  14 

China  Geese,  Brown,  456;  illustrated, 
454;  White,  456 ;  illustrated,  453 

Chinese  corn,  195 

Chinese  poultry,  supposed  origin  of,  12 

Chittagong,  391 

Cholera,  the  common  name  for  virulent 
hot-weather  diseases.  True  fowl 
cholera  is  very  rare  in  America. 
Fowl  typhoid,  infectious  leucaemia, 
and  bacterial  enteritis  are  the  dis- 
eases usually  given  the  name  of 
cholera,  339 

Chop,  corn,  186 

Cinnamon  Cochins,  387 

Circulars  for  fancy  trade,  581 

Cities,  relation  of,  to  poultry  produc- 
tion, 78 

Clams,  200 

Classification,  economic,  of  fowls,  70 ; 
geographic,  of  fowls,  346 ;  of  poultry 
at  exhibitions,  542 

Clay  soils,  76 

Cleaning  eggs,  324 

Clean-legged,  not  feathered  on  shanks 
and  feet 

Cleanliness  in  incubation,  248  ;  relation 
of,  to  egg  production,  297 

Climate,  relation  of,  to  poultry  keep- 
ing* 74 

Close  breeding,  484 

Close-heeled,  standing  straight,  with 
heels  close  together ;  opposed  to 
knock-kneed 

Closets,  roosting,  159 

Cloth,  cotton,  in  poultry  houses,  127 

Cloth  shades  for  chicks,  270 

Clovers,  196 

Clubby,  opposite  of  reachy.   See  Reach 

Cochin  China,  391 

Cochins,  387  ;  Buff,  illustrated,  388, 
529 ;  Partridge,  illustrated,  497 ; 
White,  Illustrated,  498 

Cock,  an  adult  male  fowl ;  in  exhibition 
classification,  a  male  one  year  old 
or  over.  Compounds :  turkey  cock, 
guinea  cock,  cock  pheasant 

Cockerel,  a  young  cock ;  in  exhibition 
classification,  a  male  under  a  year  old 

Cockerel  house,  153 

Cold  brooders,  277 

Cold  houses,  114 

Colds,  340 

Cold  storage,  62 


6oo 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Collection  of  poultry  products,  330 

Collective  selection,  481 

College  poultry  exhibitions,  553 

Colony  farming,  40 

Colony  houses,  illustrated,  41,  45,  87, 

134 
Colony  systems,  81  ;  illustrated,  35-39, 

9° 

Color,  effect  of  age  on,  554 

Color  matings  of  poultry,  507  ;  sorting 
eggs  for,  326 

Colorado  Agricultural  College  poultry 
houses,  illustrated,  125 

Comb,  a  naked,  fleshy  growth  on  the 
head  of  a  fowl.  The  principal  types 
of  combs  are  the  single  comb,  a  thin, 
upright,  serrated  comb ;  the  rose 
comb,  a  broad,  flat-topped  comb  hav- 
ing typically  a  well-developed  spike 
at  the  rear ;  the  pea  comb,  a  comb 
with  three  well-defined  rows  of  small 
protuberances  parallel  to  its  long 
axis;  the  forked  comb,  a  V-shaped 
comb ;  the  leaf  comb,  a  V  comb  in 
which  the  parts  are  thin  and  flat ; 
the  antler  comb,  a  V  comb  having 
the  parts  branched  like  antlers ;  the 
strawberry  comb,  a  small,  round  rose 
comb ;  the  cup  comb,  a  leaf  comb  in 
which  the  parts  are  joined  near  the 
base,  forming  a  cup 

Comb,  an  index  to  laying,  472;  rela- 
tions of  the,  to  methods,  66,  72 ; 
symptoms  in  disease,  340 

Combinations  in  poultry  culture,  61 

Comfort,  relation  of,  to  egg  production, 
294 

Commercial  features  of  shows,  536 

Commercialism,  influence  of,  23 

Comparison  judging,  542 

Compensation  principle  in  breeding, 
484 

Competition  as  a  factor  in  exhibitions, 
538 

Condiments,  214 

Conditioning  exhibition  poultry,  555 

Conjunctivitis,  sore  eyes  usually  fol- 
lowing a  cold ;  early  stage  of  keratitis 

Connecticut,  turkey  growing  in,  58 

Connecticut  Agricultural  College, 
brooder  houses  at,  illustrated,  149; 
colony  houses  at,  illustrated,  132; 
Pekin  Ducks  at,  502 

Constitution,  a  matter  of  inheritance, 
266 ;  relation  of,  to  development  of 
type,  472 ;  relation  of,  to  egg  pro- 
duction, 296 

Constitutional  causes  of  disease,  338 


Contagious  diseases,  339 

Cook  houses,  illustrated,  38 

Cooling  dressed  poultry,  319;  eggs  in 
incubators,  258 

Cooperation  in  selling  poultry  prod- 
ucts, 335 

Coops,  ancient  and  modern,  illustrated, 
106, 131;  decorating,  at  poultry  shows, 
550;  for  indoor  brooders  and  growing 
chicks,  132  ;  for  live  market  poultry, 
324  ;  for  shipping  fancy  poultry,  584 

Corn,  185 

Corn,  a  thickening  of  the  skin  on  the 
sole  of  the  foot,  due  to  abrasion 

Cornell  trap  nests,  163 

Cornell  University,  features  of  poultry 
keeping  at,  136, 170,  270,  272  ;  Cornell 
University  rations  for  poultry,  230 

Cornfields,  poultry  in,  270 

Cornish  Indian  Game,  350 ;  Dark,  .il- 
lustrated, 348;  Red- Laced,  illustrated, 
351  ;  White,  illustrated,  350 

Corn  leaves,  feeding  green,  195 

Correlation  of  characters,  471 

Correspondence  in  selling  fancy  poul- 
try, 581 

Cotton   cloth  for  windows  and  doors, 

"3 

Cotton-cloth  front  in  northerly  latitudes, 

137 
Cotton  fish  netting  as  a  substitute  for 

wire  netting,  557 
Cotton  seed,  192 

Cotton  tail,  a  tail  showing  much  unde- 
sirable white,  especially  at  the  base 
Courtes  Pattes,  382 
Coverts,   feathers  which   partly   cover 

large,  stiff  feathers,  as  wing  coverts, 

tail  coverts 
Cowpeas,  194 
Crabs,  200 
Cracked  corn,  186;  eggs  in  incubators, 

258 

Cramming,  213,  308 
Crate  feeding,  233,  307 
Creameries,  eggs,  handled  by,  331 
Creamy,  creamy  white,  525 
Creepers,  382 
Crest,  a  tuft  of  feathers  on  the  head ; 

relation  of  large,  to  methods,  66,  72 
Crevecosur,  381 
Crop,  function  of,  174 
Crops,  differences  in,  175 
Crop-bound,    having  an   impaction   of 

food  in  the  crop 
Cross,  to  breed  together  individuals  of 

different  varieties  or  breeds 
Crossbred,  produced  by  cross  breeding 


INDEX 


60 1 


Crossbred  poultry,  exhibitions  of,  552 

Crower,  a  cock  or  cockerel  as  used  by 
market  poultrymen,  particularly  a 
cockerel 

Crow  head,  a  pinched,  peaked-looking 
head  with  poor  development  of  comb 
and  wattles 

Cuckoo-colored,  barred  gray  and  white 

Cuckoo  Leghorns,  362 

Cucumbers,  198 

Cull,  a  waster,  a  specimen  of  such  in- 
ferior quality  as  to  be  unfit  for  exhi- 
bition or  for  breeding  purposes.  In 
market  poultry,  the  poorest  grade  of 
salable  stock,  320 

Curd,  202 

Curl,  the  two  recurved  tail  coverts  of  a 
drake 

Cushion,  a  conspicuous  elevation  of  the 
feathers  of  the  rump  of  a  hen  or  pul- 
let, caused  by  the  length  and  texture 
of  the  feathers 

Cuts  in  score-card  judging,  568 

Cutters,  bone,  169;  hay,  169;  root,  169 

Cygnet,  a  young  swan 

Damage  to  poultry  in  transit,  liability 
for,  581 

Daw  eye,  an  eye  having  pinkish-yellow 
glints.  Originally  a  gray  eye  like  that 
of  a  jackdaw 

Decimal  score  card,  571  ;  decimal  sys- 
tem of  score-card  judging,  568 

Deck  feathers,  a  name  sometimes  given 
to  the  two  upper  main  tail  feathers 
of  a  fowl 

Deformed  types,  424 

Depth  of  poultry  house,  118 

Dewlap,  a  pendulous  fold  of  skin  on 
the  throat,  directly  under  the  beak  or 
bill.  In  turkeys  which  have  not  lat- 
eral wattles  this  skin  is  commonly 
called  the  wattle 

Diet,  effect  of  change  in,  295 

Dietetic  causes  of  disease,  338 

Digestion  coefficients,  181 

Digestive  organs  of  poultry,  172 

Diphtheritic  roup,  analogous  to  diph- 
theria in  human  beings 

Dirty  eggs,  market  for,  325 

Disease  symptoms,  337,  339 

Dislocating  neck,  killing  by,  illustrated, 
312 

Disqualification,  a  fault  which  debars  a 
specimen  from  competition;  effect 
of,  on  value,  582 

Distemper,  a  severe  cold,  commonly 
applied  to  hot-weather  colds 


Distribution  of  poultry  products,  330 
Disturbances,  effect  of,  on  growth,  288  ; 

effect  of,  on  laying,  291 
Dogs,  control  of,  282  ;    exhibits  of,  at 

poultry  shows,  550 
Dominance,  467 
Dominique  Leghorn,  362 
Dominiques.  See  American  Dominiques 
Dorkings,  378  ;  Dark,  illustrated,  380  ; 

Silver  Gray,  illustrated,  379,  494,  501 
Double-mating  system,  491,  509,  534 
Dough  carts,  illustrated,  37,  170 
Down,      rudimentary      feathers.      See 

Feather 
Drainage,  76 
Drake,  a  male  duck 
Dressed  poultry,  exhibits  of,  at  shows, 

549;  judging,  574 
Dressing  poultry,  311,  333 
Drinking  vessels,  166 
Drooped  wings,  wings  habitually  held 

in  a  drooping  position ;   common  in 

young  stock  that  is  ill-nourished  or 

lacking  in  vitality 
Droppings  boards,  1 58 
Dry  bone,  203 
Dry  houses,  104 
Dry  mash,  219 
Dry  packing,  321 
Dry  picking,  316 
Dub,  to  cut  off  the  comb  and  wattles, 

and  sometimes  also  the  ear  lobes 
Duck,  the  common  name  of  the  duck 

species ;    especially    applied   to    the 

female 

Duck-footed,  having  very  short  or  de- 
formed hind  toes 
Duck  growing,  48 ;  overproduction  in, 

63 

Duckling,  a  young  duck 

Ducks,  green,  304 ;  height  of  fence  for, 
96;  laying  habits  of,  130,  160;  rations 
for, 234;  varieties  of:  Aylesbury,  441; 
illustrated,  503 ;  Blue  Swedish,  443 ; 
illustrated,  441  ;  Blue  Termonde, 
443  ;  Call,  448  ;  Cayuga,  442  ;  illus- 
trated, 440 ;  common,  449  ;  Crested 
White,  448;'  Duclair-Rouen,  441; 
Indian  Runner,  illustrated,  446; 
Mallard,  illustrated,  438  ;  Merchtem, 
442 ;  Muscovy,  444  ;  illustrated,  443- 
444 ;  Pekin,  443  ;  illustrated,  442,  502, 
504 ;  Penguin,  447 ;  Rouen,  illus- 
trated, 439,  505;  color  selection  of, 

534 
Duckwing  Leghorns,  361,  illustrated, 

362 
Du  Mans  fowls,  381 


6O2 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Durability  of  poultry  houses,  127 
Durra,  195 
Dust  bath,  167,  342 
Dutch  Everyday  Layers,  373 
Dysentery,    a    severe    diarrhea    with 
bloody  discharges 

Ear  lobe,  a  fold  of  bare,  enameled  skin 
below  the  ear  of  a  fowl ;  injury  to  the, 

556 
Eccentric  features  in  poultry  houses, 

126 
Economic  values  of  exhibition  poultry, 

577 
Educational  features  of  poultry  shows, 

536 

Egg,  appearance  of  fertile,  249 ;  crop, 
effect  of  poor  hatching  season  on, 
65  ;  description  of  an,  238  ;  develop- 
ment of  an,  289 

Egg-bound,  unable  to  extrude  a  full- 
grown  egg 

Egg  eating,  a  vice,  342 

Egg  farming,  32 

Egg  production,  289 ;  mating  fowls  for, 
492 

Eggs,  analyses  of,  202  ;  boxes  and  cases 
for,  327;  colors  of,  326;  cooling,  in 
incubators,  258  ;  effect  on,  of  chilling 
during  incubation,  250;  exhibits  of, 
at  shows,  549  ;  as  food,  31  ;  for  hatch- 
ing, guaranty  of  fertility  of,  582;  in- 
cubating cracked,  258;  infertile,  as 
poultry  food,  217  ;  influence  of  male 
on  production  of,  494  ;  judging,  574  ; 
methods  of  shipping,  585 ;  number 
of,  in  setting,  246;  preparation  of, 
for  market,  325;  properties  of,  10; 
relation  of  size  of,  to  size  of  bird, 
492  ;  selection  of,  for  hatching,  245  ; 
sizes  of,  326 ;  testing,  248,  259  ;  treat- 
ment of,  at  hatching  time,  251,  263  ; 
turning,  in  incubators,  258;  weights 
of,  327 

Egg  type,  71,  472 

Egyptian  corn,  195 

Electric  regulators  for  incubators  and 
brooders,  281 

Enamel,  the  smooth,  glossy  surface  of 
the  ear  lobe  of  a  fowl 

English  Games,  illustrated,  347 

English  meat  types,  377 

English  type  of  Leghorn,  356 

Ensilage,  196 

Enteritis,  inflammation  of  the  small 
intestines,  339 

Ermine  color  pattern,  mating  the,  520 ; 
undercolor  in  the,  533 


Erminette,  520 

Estaires,  423 

Ethics  of  conditioning  exhibition  poul- 
try, 560 

European  meat  types,  376 

Excelsior  for  packing  eggs,  585 

Exercise,  relation  of,  to  egg  production, 
296 ;  relation  of,  to  feeding,  209 

Exhibition  pen,  543 

Export  style  of  packing  poultry,  321 

Extensive  methods,  79 

Extensive  systems,  87 

Eye,  color  of,  as  an  indication  of  vigor, 
473 

Face,  the  side  of  the  head,  especially 
when  bare,  as  in  gallinaceous  poultry 

Factors  in  score-card  judging,  568 

Factory  methods,  33 

Faking,  557 

Fancy  poultry,  profits  in,  578 ;  status 
of,  59 

Fantail,  a  tail  spread  perpendicularly, 
also  called  rudder  tail 

Farm  methods,  35,  80 

Farmer's  colony  house,  illustrated,  140 

Fasting  before  killing,  311 

Fat,  effects  of  excessive,  209 

Fats,  179 

Fattening,  methods  of,  301 

Fattening  and  killing  houses,  illus- 
trated, 149 

Fattening  rations,  233 

Fattening  sheds  for  ducks,  illustrated,  53 

Faverolles,  illustrated,  423 

Feather,  a  typical  feather,  having  quill, 
shaft,  and  web.  Feathers  on  different 
parts  of  a  bird  are  of  different  forms. 
As  distinguished  from  a  typical  fea- 
ther a  down  feather  is  hairlike,  with- 
out discernible  quill,  while  a  stub,  or 
stub  feather,  shows  quill  and  web 
but  in  rudimentary  form 

Feather  eating,  342 

Feathers,  a  by-product,  10;  care  of 
marketable,  324  ;  selling,  334 

Feeding,  forced,  213  ;  methods  of,  208  ; 
need  of  practice  in,  2 ;  poultry  at 
shows,  564 

Feeding  habits  of  poultry,  209 

Feed  mixer,  169 

Feed  room,  167 

Feed  troughs,  163 

Fences,  95 

Fertile  egg,  appearance  of  a,  249 

Fertility,  234 ;  guaranties  of,  582  ;  pe- 
riod of,  489  ;  relation  of,  to  vitality, 
240 


INDEX 


603 


Financing  a  show,  539 

Finishing  table  poultry,  301 

Fireless  brooders,  277 

Fish,  fresh,  200 

Fish  netting  as  a  substitute  for  wire 

netting,  557 
Fish  scraps,  200 
Fishtail    comb,    a    single    comb    that 

splits  at  the  rear 
Flax  meal,  193 
Flaxseed,  192 
Flesh  of  poultry,  composition  of  the, 

172;  relation  of  color  of,  to  quality, 

497 

Flights,  the  functional  feathers  of  the 
wing,  primaries  and  secondaries 

Floats,  the  trade  name  for  eggs  in 
which  the  embryo  has  started  and, 
in  candling,  appears  before  the  light 
as  a  floating  spot 

Flock,  size  of  a,  84,  273 

Floor  dimensions,  116 

Floor  levels,  125 

Floor  materials,  127 

Flour,  low-grade,  184;  in  mashes,  216; 
rice,  192 

Fluff,  downy  plumage ;  applied  to  the 
downy  web  at  the  quill  end  of  a  typi- 
cal feather,  and  also  to  the  feathers 
of  the  abdomen  of  a  gallinaceous 
bird,  which  are  all  fluffy  and  collec- 
tively are  called  the  fluff 

Fluke,  a  species  of  intestinal  worm 

Folding  coop,  illustrated,  107 

Food  requirements  of  poultry,  172 

Foods,  common,  178;  mineral,  203; 
natural,  175;  proprietary,  210 

Forcing,  212 

Foreign  color,  in  color  varieties,  any 
color  not  required  in  the  established 
pattern  ;  false  color ;  foul  color 

Foundation  stock,  67 

Fowl,  definition,  5 ;  original  type  of,  344 

Fowls,  economic  classification  of,  70; 
height  of  fence  for,  96 ;  style  of 
packing  for  export  of,  321  ;  when 
to  market,  304 

French  and  Belgian  meat  types,  380 

French  Cuckoo,  382 

Fresh-air  movement,  112;  principal 
requirement  in  houses,  104 

Friesland  fowls,  372 

Frizzles,  425 

Frostbites,  341 

Frosting,  irregular  and  objectionable 
edgings  or  tracings  of  white  or  light 
color  on  black  or  dark  ground  color 

Fryer,  303 


Fuel  values  of  foods,  180 
Full-blood,  purebred 
Furnished,  having  male  characters  fully 
developed 

Gallinaceous  birds,  feeding  habits  of, 

175 

Callus  Bankiva^  344 

Gallon's  law,  468 

Game  fowls,  347 

Gander,  a  male  goose 

Gapes,  a  disease  in  which  the  charac- 
teristic symptom  is  gaping,  caused 
by  gapeworms  obstructing  the  wind- 
pipe 

Gastritis,  acute  itidigestion 

Gates,  1 06 

Geese,  nests  for,  247  ;  rations  for,  237 ; 
varieties:  African,  456;  illustrated, 
455;  China,  456;  illustrated,  453-454; 
common, 449;  Egyptian, 458;  Emden, 
451;  illustrated,  450;  Pomeranian, 
450;  Roman,  449;  Sebastopol,  458; 
Toulouse,  452;  illustrated,  45 1  ;  Wild, 
457  ;  illustrated,  452 

Geese,  fattening,  as  a  business,  55 

General-purpose  type,  description  of 
the,  71  ;  Continental  European,  423 

Germ,  of  an  egg,  238 ;  relations  of 
body  and,  459 ;  vitality  of  a,  249 

Gills,  the  wattles 

Gizzard,  note  on,  174 

Glass  in  poultry  houses,  127 

Gluten  products,  187 

Going  light,  becoming  emaciated  with- 
out pronounced  symptoms  of  disease 

Goose,  the  common  name  of  the  goose 
species ;  especially  applied  to  the 
female 

Goose  growing,  54  ;  features  of,  illus- 
trated, 56 

Gosling,  a  young  goose 

Goslings,  growth  of,  illustrated,  285 ; 
rations  for,  237 

Grade,  strictly,  a  bird  having  one  pure- 
bred parent  and  one  of  mixed  blood, 
but  the  term  is  usually  applied  to  a 
bird  having  one  parent  line  (usually 
the  male  line)  purebred  and  the  other 
of  mixed  blood 

Grading,  dressed  poultry,  320 ;  live 
poultry  for  market,  324 

Grapes,  198 

Grass  clippings,  195 

Gray  eggs,  326 

Green  bone,  203 

Green  ducks,  304 

Green  food,  213 


604 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Green  geese,  305 

Grit,  function  of,  174,  203  ;  in  commer- 
cial mixed  feeds,  211 

Groats,  buckwheat,  191 

Grooming  and  faking,  difference  be- 
tween, 557 

Growth,  effect  of  check  in,  on  laying, 
291  ;  rate  of,  284 

Guineas,  436 ;  rations  for,  234 

Hackle,  the  hackle  feathers, — the  long, 
narrow  feathers  on  the  neck  of  a  fowl 

Half-barrel  nests,  illustrated,  244 

Hamburgs,  368  ;  Silver-Spangled,  illus- 
trated, 373-374 

Hammonton,  N.J.,  a  broiler  center,  43 

Hampton  Institute,  colony  system  at, 
illustrated,  90 

Hangers,  the  posterior,  or  saddle, 
hackle  feathers 

Hatches,  causes  of  poor,  264 

Hatching,  conditions  of  good,  252 

Hatching  time,  treatment  of  eggs  at,  251 

Hawk-colored  fowls,  14 

Hay,  197  ;  cutters,  169 

Heat,  function  of,  in  incubation,  240; 
regulation  in  artificial  brooding,  276 

Height,  of  fences,  96 ;  of  poultry  houses, 
118  ;  x>f  roosts,  157 

Hempseed,  195 

Hen,  an  adult  female  fowl ;  in  exhibi- 
tion classification,  a  bird  one  year  old 
or  over.  Also  in  compounds,  turkey 
hen,  pea  hen,  etc. 

Hen-feathered,  a  term  applied  to  cocks 
lacking  distinctive  male  plumage 

Henny,  hen-feathered 

Hillside,  poultry  house  on,  154 

Hinges,  101 

Hock,  the  joint  at  the  junction  of  the 
feathered  thigh  and  the  scaly  shank 
of  a  bird 

Hoppers,  feed,  165 

Horn  comb,  a  small,  fleshy  comb  hav- 
ing two  upright  spikes  at  the  rear 

Hotels  as  buyers  of  eggs,  330 

Houdan,  381,  illustrated,  382 

Houses,  102 

Hulls,  cottonseed,  193 ;  rice,  192 

Huttegem  fowl,  424 

Hygiene  and  sanitation,  337 

Ice  packing  for  poultry,  321 

Improved  types,  quality  of,  479 

Inbreeding,  485 

Incubation,  antiquity  of,  17;  develop- 
ment of  the  chick  in,  261 ;  period  of, 
250 


Incubator,  common  errors  in  operating, 
264;  first  practical,  17;  management 
of,  when  hatching,  263  ;  routine  work 
of  operating,  258;  selection  of,  254; 
ventilation  in,  259 

Incubator  cellars,  256;  illustrated,  47, 
2  54 

Indigestible  food  materials,  action  of, 
176 

Indoor  brooders,  coops  for,  132 

Influenza,  contagious  catarrh 

Inheritance,  constitution  and,  266 ;  phe- 
nomena of,  467 

Inland  duck  farms,  51 

Insecticides,  342 

Institutes  at  poultry  shows,  552 

Intensive  methods,  79  ;  illustrated,  32- 
34,  83-84,  272 ;  application  of,  to 
roaster  growing,  92  ;  not  adapted  to 
large  operations,  28 

Intensive  systems,  advantages  and  dis- 
advantages of,  89 

Intermediate  matings,  491 

Internal  parasites,  341 

Iowa  Agricultural  College,  colony 
houses  at,  91  ;  fattening  houses  at, 
150;  long  houses  at,  illustrated,  145 

Italian  fowls,  355,  360 

Japan,  food  of  fowls  in,  178 

Javas,  404 

Jersey  Blue,  397 

Jews,  relation  of,  to  live-poultry  trade, 

333 

Journalism,  influence  of,  on  the  poultry 
industry,  19 

Judges,  compensation  of,  539 ;  qualifi- 
cations of,  541 

Judging,  definition  and  objects  of,  566; 
methods  of,  542,  577;  ring,  551 

Jungle  fowl,  344 

Kafir  corn,  194 

Kansas  Agricultural  College  ration,  229 
Keel,  the  lower  lengthwise  line  of  the 
body ;  strictly  the  ridge  on  the  breast- 
bone, but  technically,  the  outline  of 
the  bird  from  the  anterior  point  of 
the  breastbone  to  the  vent 
Keratitis,  a  disease  of  the  eye 
Killing,  methods  of,  311 
Killing  houses,  illustrated,  149 
Knob,  the  round,  horny  protuberance 
at  the  juncture  of  the  upper  mandible 
and  the  skull  of  African  and  China 
Geese 

Knock-kneed,  having  the  hocks  bent 
inward 


INDEX 


605 


Laced,  having  the  feathers  marked  with 
a  band  or  stripe  around  the  edge. 
The  term  is  used  only  with  reference 
to  ordinary  and  wide  feathers.  The 
long,  narrow  feathers  of  the  hackles 
of  cocks  and  hens  and  the  saddles  of 
cocks,  when  marked  in  this  way,  are 
said  to  be  striped 

La  Fleche,  380 

Lakenvelder,  368  ;  illustrated,  369 

Lamp  brooders,  278 

Langshans,  Black,  389  ;  illustrated,  390, 
524;  White,  390;  illustrated,  391,  524 

Laws  of  heredity,  468 

Laying  types,  352,  368,  447 

Leaf  comb.    See  Comb 

Leaves  for  litter,  209 

Leghorns,355 ;  and  Minorcas  compared, 
365;  Black,  illustrated,  360;  Buff,  357; 
illustrated,  358,  529-53 1 ;  Brown,  356 ; 
illustrated,  356,  508-511;  Cuckoo,  or 
Dominique,  362 ;  Duckwing,  362 ; 
illustrated,  362-363 ;  Mottled  (see 
Ancona);  Pile,  361;  White,  359; 
illustrated,  359,  521-523 

Leg  weakness,  in  healthy  young  birds, 
lack  of  strength  to  carry  weight 

Length,  of  body  in  relation  to  table 
properties,  500;  of  poultry  houses,  119 

Lettuce,  195 

Lice,  342 ;  prevention  and  treatment 
of,  283 

Light  Brahma.    See  Brahmas 

Lighting,  candling 

Light  Sussex,  378 

Limber  neck,  a  symptom  indicating 
acute  indigestion,  ptomaine  poison- 
ing, or  internal  parasites 

Lime  breeding,  485 

Limed  eggs,  eggs  preserved  in  limewater 

Linseed  meal,  193 

Literature,  collections  of,  for  exhibi- 
tion, 552  ;  influence  of,  18 

Litter,  materials  used  for,  209 

Little  Compton,  R.  I.,  colony  system 
.at,  35 

Live  poultry,  shipping,  324 

Lobsters,  200 

Long  Island  duck  farms,  49 

Long  poultry  houses,  illustrated,  122- 
123,  145,  148 

Lopped  comb,  a  comb  that  from  weak- 
ness at  the  base  falls  to  one  side 

Loss-off,  a  trade  term  for  a  sale  of  eggs 
subject  to  candling  by  the  purchaser, 
and  to  deduction  for  inferior  and  bad 
eggs 

Low-grade  flour,  184 


Macdonald  College,  arrangement  of 
colony  houses  at,  92  ;  poultry  houses 
at,  illustrated,  135-136,  149 

Madison  Square  Garden  Show,  arrange- 
ment of  classes  at,  548  ;  table  showing 
numbers  of  birds  exhibited  in  various 
classes  at,  544 

Magyar  fowls,  368 

Mail-order  poultry  trade,  578 

Maine  Agricultural  College,  poultry 
houses  at,  illustrated,  137,  149 

Maine  Experiment  Station,  breeding 
work  at,  493 ;  count  of  ovules  at,  290  ; 
observation  at,  on  the  relation  of 
growth  to  laying,  292 ;  poultry  houses 
at,  132,  158 

Maine  Experiment  Station  rations,  224 

Malay,  relation  of  the,  to  Asiatic  class, 

384 
Male,  influence  of,  on  egg  production, 

494 

Male  and  female,  relative  value  of,  in 
breeding,  477 

Malines  fowls,  424 

Mallard  Duck,  438 

Malt  sprouts,  189 

Mangel-wurzel,  198 

Mantes  fowls,  381 

Manufacturers'  directions  for  operating 
incubators,  255 

Manufacturing  methods  not  suited  to 
poultry  culture,  28 

Manure,  market  for,  305 

Marbled,  having  the  colors  distributed 
as  in  marble ;  applied  particularly  to 
the  wings  of  barred  fowls 

Market,  requirements  of  the,  as  to  pick- 
ing, 318;  sorting  poultry  for,  324 

Market  products  described,  30 

Markets,  extent  of,  77 

Maryland  Experiment  Station,  poultry 
building  at,  254 

Mash,  214 

Massachusetts  Agricultural  College, 
poultry  buildings  at,  148,  254,  276 

Mating  systems,  491 

Meal,  alfalfa,  197;  barley,  188;  blood, 
199;  broom-corn-seed,  192;  clover, 
197  ;  corn,  187  ;  cottonseed,  193  ;  glu- 
ten, 187  ;  hominy,  187;  linseed,  193; 
meat,  199;  pea,  194;  sorghum  seed, 
192  ;  soy  bean,  194 

Mealy,  unevenly  marked  with  specks 
of  another  color  or  shade 

Meat,  of  poultry  as  food,  31 

Meat  type  defined,  71 

Meat  types,  Asiatic,  384;  European, 
380 


6o6 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Mediterranean  types  and  breeds,  352 

Mendel's  law,  469 

Method,  defined,  79 

Methods,  of  artificial  brooding,  277;  of 
feeding,  208 ;  of  incubation  compared, 
242  ;  of  judging,  542,  567;  of  killing, 
310;  of  packing,  321;  of  picking,  318; 
of  testing  eggs,  249 

Michigan  Agricultural  College,  poultry 
buildings  at,  138-140,  146-147 

Middlemen,  relations  of,  to  poultrymen, 
27,  329 

Middlings,  buckwheat,  191;  corn,  187; 
oat,  1 88 ;  wheat,  184 

Milk,  201 

Millet,  194 

Mill  feeds,  mixed,  190 

Mineral  elements  in  foods,  179;  func- 
tions of,  in  poultry  nutrition,  203 

Minnesota,  cotton-front  poultry  house 
in,  illustrated,  117 

Minorcas,  363 ;  Black,  illustrated,  364, 
525;  White,  illustrated,  365 

Mites,  342 

Mixed  feeds,  185,  190 

Mixers  for  poultry  food,  168 

Moisture  in  incubation,  259 

Molasses,  beet,  197 

Molting,  relation  of,  to  egg  production, 
298 

Mongrels,  13;  characteristics  of,  346 

Moors,  introduction  of  fowls  into  Spain 

by»  363 
Mossy,  having  traces  of  penciling  on 

parts    of  feathers  which  should   be 

clean-colored 
Mottled,  having  feathers  of  two  colors 

without   regular   pattern,   as   in   the 

Houdan ;  also,  having  different  shades 

of  a  color  in  the  same  section  of  the 

plumage 

Moving  poultry  houses,illustrated, 38, 1 38 
Muffs,  tufts  of  feathers  at  the  sides  of 

the  head 

Muscovy  Ducks,  illustrated,  444 
Mussels,  200 

Natural  feeding  habits  of  poultry,  209 ; 

natural  selection,  478 
Nests,  160,  illustrated,  38,  160,  244,  247; 

confining  hens  to,  246 ;  materials  for, 

245 

New  blood,  introducing,  487 
New  York  Show.    See  Madison  Square 

Garden 
North    Carolina  Agricultural    College, 

poultry  buildings  at,  115,  134;    trap 

nests  at,  164 


Nourishment,  relation  of,  to  egg  produc- 
tion, 293 

Nursing,  importance  of,  in  the  treat- 
ment of  disease,  340 

Nutrient  ratio,  180 

Nutritive  organs  of  birds,  172 

Oatmeal,  187 

Oats,  187 

Oiled  cloth,  113 

Onion  tops,  195 

Onions,  197 

Ontario  Experiment  Station,  experiment 
with  whey  at,  202;  incubator  house 
at,  128 

Ontario  Experiment  Station  rations, 
228 

Open  classes,  542 

Open-front  houses,  114;  illustrated, 
no,  114,  117 

Orpingtons,  416;  varieties:  Black,  illus- 
trated, 417  ;  Buff,  illustrated,  418, 422, 
529;  Jubilee,  419;  Spangled,  420; 
White,  illustrated,  419,  499 

Ostriches,  feeding  habits  of,  177;  ra- 
tions of,  235 

Outcross,  to  bring  in  new  blood,  to 
mate  birds  of  a  close-bred  stock  or 
strain  with  birds  of  another  family 
of  their  variety 

Ovaries,  289 

Overcrowding,  effects  of,  268,  555 

Overproduction  of  ducks,  62 

Oviduct,  289 

Ovules,  number  of,  290,  493 

Oyster  shells,  204 

Oysters,  200 

Packing,  fancy  poultry  and  eggs  for 
hatching,  584 ;  market  eggs,  327 ; 
market  poultry,  321 

Painting,  exhibition  coops,  551  ;  poul- 
try houses,  129 

Pair,  of  live  birds  for  breeding  or  ex- 
hibition, a  male  and  a  female ;  of 
dressed  poultry  for  exhibition,  two 
birds  of  the  same  sex 

Parasites,  external,  283,  342  ;  internal, 

34i 

Parti-colored,  of  two  or  more  colors 
Particulate  selection,  481 
Pasture,  for  poultry,  95  ;  for  geese,  237  , 

for  goslings,  274 
Pavloff  fowls,  375 
Peaches,  198 
Pea  comb.    See  Comb 
Peafowls,  436  ;  rations  for,  234 
Pea  meal,  194 


INDEX 


607 


Pears,  194 

Peas,  194 

Pebbled,  having  the  surface  uniformly 
covered  with  small  protuberances ; 
applied  especially  to  the  upper  sur- 
face of  a  rose  comb 

Peculiarities  of  the  fancy  poultry  trade, 

578 

Pekin  Duck,  443  ;  influence  of,  on  duck 
culture  in  America,  50 

Pen,  (i)  one  of  the  compartments  of  a 
poultry  house;  (2)  the  birds  kept  in 
one  compartment ;  (3)  exhibition  pen, 
a  male  and  four  females  matched  for 
exhibition;  (4)  breeding  pen,  a  male 
and  his  breeding  mates.  In  descrip- 
tions of  stock  in  transactions  in  fancy 
poultry  a  breeding  pen,  unless  other- 
wise specified,  consists  of  a  male  and 
four  females 

Penciled,  marked  with  regular  lines 
in  series,  producing  either  multiple 
lacing  or  very  fine  barring.  Multiple- 
laced  feathers  are  described  as 
double-laced  or  triple-laced,  accord- 
ing to  the  pattern 

Pennsylvania  State  College  buildings, 
86 

Pens  for  fitting  exhibition  birds,  556 

Pepper,  214 

Perches.   See  Roosts 

Periods,  of  artificial  brooding,  282  ;  of 
fertility,  489;  of  incubation,  250;  of 
laying,  297 

Petaluma,  poultry  methods  at,  illus- 
trated, 40 

Pet-stock  exhibits  at  poultry  shows,  550 

Pheasants,  437 ;  coops  and  runs  for, 
illustrated,  60-6 1  ;  rations  for,  234; 
roosting  habits  of,  130 

Phcenix  Fowl,  illustrated,  513 

Piano-box  houses,  134,  271 

Picking,  exhibition  poultry,  562  ;  mar- 
ket poultry,  315  ;  illustrated,  316 

Pie  melons,  198 

Pigeons,  at  poultry  shows,  550 ;  con- 
trasted with  poultry,  7 

Pile,  a  white  fowl  having  (in  the  male) 
the  neck  and  back  colored,  that  is, 
capped  with  another  color.  The  word 
comes  from  Latin  pileus,  a  cap 

Pile  Leghorns,  361 

Pinched  tail,  a  tail  that  folds  too  closely 
to  look  well 

Pinfeather,  a  typical  feather  in  the 
early  stages  of  growth 

Pip,  inflammation  of  the  mouth 

Pipe  brooders,  278 


Plums,  198 

Plymouth  Rocks,  compared  with  other 
breeds  of  their  class,  420 ;  varieties  of : 
Barred,  16,  398  ;  illustrated,  400,  496, 
517;  Buff,  illustrated,  403;  Colum- 
bian, illustrated,  404  ;  Partridge,  illus- 
trated, 404,  511;  Silver-Penciled, 
404;  illustrated,  514;  White,  402; 
illustrated,  401-402,  498,  500 

Points,  relation  of  scale  of,  to  judging, 

567 

Polish,  368  ;  illustrated,  336,  506 

Polverrara  fowl,  376 

Pork  scrap,  199 

Posts,  fence,  99 

Potatoes,  197 

Potential  energy,  180 

Poulard,  a  castrated  pullet 

Poulets  de  grains,  383 

Poult,  a  young  turkey 

Poultry,  definition  of,  5 ;  contrasted 
with  aerial  birds,  7 

Poultry  keeper,  definition  of,  64 

Prat  fowl,  424 

Prepotency,  465 

Present  characters,  467 

Prices  of  fancy  poultry  and  eggs,  583 

Primaries,  primary  flights,  the  large 
feathers  on  the  first  joint  of  the  wing 

Prizes,  advertising  value  of,  536 ;  sweep- 
stakes, 548 

Progressive  selection,  481 

Prolapse,  prolapse  of  the  oviduct 

Proteids,  178 

Protein,  179;  cooked-meat  products  as 
a  source  of,  200 

Provender,  190 

Provincial  Breeding  Station,  British 
Columbia,  buildings  at,  illustrated, 
81,  137,  141,  277 

Pullet,  an  immature  female  fowl ;  in 
exhibition  classification,  a  bird  under 
one  year  old 

Pumpkins,  198 

Punch  marker,  a  punch  for  making 
identification  marks  in  the  webs  be- 
tween the  toes  of  poultry  ;  also  called 
a  poultry  punch 

Purebred,  having  blood  lines  pure, 
having  the  blood  of  no  other  variety 

Purple  barring  in  black  fowls,  528 

Quarantine  for  poultry  returning  from 
shows,  565 

Range,  temporary,  94 
Rankin,  James,  note  by,  on  habits  of 
ducks,  51 ;  rations  of,  for  ducks,  225 


6o8 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Rape,  195 

Rapeseed,  195 

Rate  of  growth  in  poultry,  284 

Ratio,  nutrient,  180 

Ration,  206;  power  of  poultry  to  bal- 
ance, 179 

Rations,  effects  of  changing,  295  ;  exam- 
ples of,  220  ;  for  special  purposes,  210 

Rattling  in  the  throat,  a  symptom  of 
sore  throat 

Reach,  reachiness,  reachy ;  applied 
especially  to  Exhibition  Games  and 
Game  Bantams.  A  bird  that,  when 
posed,  will  stretch  upward,  increasing 
its  height  and  still  balancing  itself 
easily  on  its  legs,  has  reach  and  is 
reachy  in  proportion  to  its  ability  to 
respond  to  efforts  to  make  it  stretch. 
A  bird  that  is  not  properly  balanced 
on  its  legs  cannot  reach.  Such  a  bird 
is  said  to  be  clubby 

Recessiveness,  467 

Redcap,  379 

Red-dog  flour,  216 

Red  fowls,  mating,  513  ;  undercolor  in, 

S32 

Red  in  white  fowls,  525 
Refuse  food  for  poultry,  185 
Regression  from  type,  475 
Regularity,  effect  of,  on  egg  production, 

294 

Reproduction,  kinds  of,  459 
Reproductive   organs,   289 ;  functional 

activity  of  the,  293 
Reptiles,  relation  of,  to  birds,  174 
Reversion,  467 
Rhode    Island    Agricultural     College, 

poultry  houses  at,  illustrated,  133,  142 
Rhode  Island  Colony  system,  81 
Rhode  Island  Red,  82,  413  ;  illustrated, 

413-415,  528 
Ribbon,  the  broad,  lustrous  blue-green 

band  on  the  wing  of  a  Mallard  or  a 

Rouen  Duck 
Rice,  191 
Ring,  a  band  of  white  on  the  neck  of  a 

dark  bird,  as  in  Mallard  and  Rouen 

drakes  and  Ringneck  pheasants 
Ring  judging,  551 
Ringy,  having  the  bars  on  the  feathers 

so  disposed  that  the  light  and  dark 

bars  on   contiguous  feathers  match 

closely  and  form  extended  lines  or 

rings.    This  style  of  barring  is  also 

called  zebra  barring 
Roach  back,  a  convex  back  in  a  bird 

of  a   breed    which   has    typically   a 

straight  back  or  a  concave  back 


Roasters,  304;  method  of  packing,  321 

Roofs,  styles  of,  121 

Rooster,  a  cock 

Roosting  closets,  159 

Roosting  coops,  109 

Roosting  sheds,  270 

Roosts,  1 56 ;  for  turkeys,  illustrated,  58 

Root  cutters,  169 

Rose  comb.    See  Comb 

Rot,  the  trade  name  for  a  rotten  egg 

Rouen  Ducks,  439,  534 ;  illustrated, 
502,  532 

Roundworms,  intestinal  worms 

Roup,  the  common  name  for  diseases 
of  the  respiratory  organs  of  poultry, 
340 

Roupy,  having  symptoms  of  roup,  es- 
pecially catarrhal  symptoms 

Rudder  tail,  a  fantail 

Rumpless  fowls,  425 

Run,  a  yard,  especially  a  small  yard 
for  poultry 

Rye,  189 

Saddle,  the  rear  part  of  the  back  of  a 
cock,  just  before  the  tail 

Sale  classes  at  shows,  549 

Salt  in  poultry  food,  214 

Sanitation,  337 

Scabies,  a  skin  disease  of  gallinaceous 
poultry  caused  by  the  depluming 
mite 

Scalding,  food,  216;  poultry,  314 

Scales  of  points,  use  of,  in  judging,  567 

Scaly  leg,  a  foot  disease  of  gallinaceous 
poultry  caused  by  a  mite  which  bur- 
rows under  and  gradually  destroys 
the  scales,  339 

Score-card  judging,  567 

Scraps,  beef,  199 ;  fish,  200 ;  pork,  199 

Scratching-shed  houses,  113;  illus- 
trated, no,  115 

Screenings,  barley,  189;  wheat,  184 

Scrub,  an  ill-bred  or  ill-developed  bird 

Secondaries,  the  secondary  flight 
feathers 

Selection,  artificial  and  natural,  478 ; 
of  a  breed  or  variety,  67 ;  of  eggs  for 
hatching,  245,  257  ;  of  an  incubator, 
254 ;  of  layers,  299 ;  of  poultry  for 
exhibition,  554 ;  relative  value  of 
characters  in,  480  ;  for  shape  in  mat- 
ing Standard  poultry,  504;  systems 
of,  481 

Serrated,  having  the  edge  regularly 
notched.  All  single  combs  are  ser- 
rated 

Serration,  a  point  in  a  serrated  comb 


INDEX 


609 


Set-kettle  for  cooking  feed,  168 

Setting,  number  of  eggs  in  a,  246 

Sex,  function  of,  461  ;  regulation  of, 
490 

Sexes,  equality  in  transmission  of  char- 
acters, 463  ;  ratio  of,  in  mating,  488  ; 
relative  value  of,  in  breeding,  477  ; 
separation  of  the,  while  growing, 
287 

Sexual  reproduction,  likeness  in,  462 

Shades,  cloth,  for  chickens,  270 

Shafting,  objectionable  prominence  of 
the  shaft  of  a  feather,  caused  by  the 
shaft  (and  sometimes  a  little  of  the 
web  near  it)  being  lighter  or  darker 
than  the  general  surface  of  the 
feather 

Shafty,  having  a  large  amount  of  shaft- 
ing in  the  plumage 

Shanghais,  385 

Shank,  the  leg  between  the  foot  and 
the  hock 

Shape,  standards  of,  504  ;  in  table  poul- 
try, 499 

Shaping  dressed  poultry,  320 

Shell  of  the  egg,  239 

Shellfish,  201 

Sherwood,  a  white  half-Game  American 

fowl,  rare 
.  Shingles,  use  of,  126 

Shipping,  dressed  poultry,  321;  fancy 
poultry  and  eggs,  584 ;  live  market 
poultry,  324 ;  poultry  to  shows,  563 

Shorts,  185 

Shoulder,  the  highest  part  of  the  wing 

Shrunken  eggs,  eggs  having  the  con- 
tents partly  evaporated 

Siberian  Feather- Footed  Fowl,  375 

Sickle,  a  sickle  feather,  a  feather  hav- 
ing the  shape  of  a  sickle.  The  sickles 
proper  are  the  two  long  upper  plumes 
in  the  tail  of  a  cock.  The  similar  in- 
ferior plumes  are  called  the  lesser 
sickles 

Side  sprig,  a  small  spike  on  the  side 
of  a  single  comb 

Silkies,  425 

Single-mating  system,  491 

Singles,  single  entries,  birds  entered 
separately  for  competition 

Sitting  hen,  food  of  the,  248 

Size,  relation  of,  to  utility,  482 

Skim  milk,  201 

Skin,  relation  of  color  of,  to  quality  of 
flesh,  473 

Slack  crop,  a  pendulous  crop,  a  crop 
permanently  distended  and  causing 
deformity 


Slip,  a  capon  which  develops  some  of 
the  male  characters  usually  sup- 
pressed by  castration,  310 

Slipped  wing,  a  wing  the  primaries  of 
which  cannot  be  properly  folded,  506 

Smut,  irregular  and  objectionable  edg- 
ing or  tracing  of  black  or  dark  color 
on  white  or  light  ground 

Snow,  effect  of,  on  laying,  130 

Soft-roaster    growing,    45 ;    illustrated, 

44-47 

Soils,  72,  76 

Solid  color,  a  single  color,  self  color 
(applied  to  a  pattern) ;  of  uniform 
shade  (applied  to  a  color) 

Sorehead,  chicken  pox 

Sorghum  seed,  192 

South  Shore  district,  cooperation  in  the 
335  ;  fattening  methods  in  the,  303 

Soy  beans,  194 

Spangle,  a  large,  regular  spot  at  the 
tip  of  a  feather 

Spanish,  Black,  illustrated,  367 

Specializing,  limitations  of,  43 

Speckled,  irregularly  marked  with  sev- 
eral colors 

Spike,  of  a  comb,  the  rear  point  of  a 
rose  comb 

Spike,  loss  of  a,  557 

Spinach,  195 

Splashed  feather,  a  feather  on  which  two 
or  more  colors  appear  in  patches,  with 
no  tendency  toward  any  regular  pattern 

Split  comb.    See  Comb 

Spot,  the  trade  name  for  an  egg  with  a 
bad  spot  but  not  yet  rotten 

Sprouted  oats,  188 

Sprouts,  malt,  189 

Spur,  the  spine  on  the  inside  of  the 
shank  of  a  cock.  In  the  hen  it  is 
usually  rudimentary,  but  hens  often 
grow  long  spurs 

Squirrel  tail,  a  tail  carried  so  high  that 
it  projects  beyond  a  perpendicular 
at  its  junction  with  the  back 

Stag,  a  young  gamecock 

Staggy,  hard-meated,  like  a  stag,  310 

Stale  bread,  185 

Standard,  of  the  American  Poultry 
Association,  480 

Standard  bred,  bred  to  conform  to  the 
requirements  of  the  American  Poul- 
try Association's  standards 

Standard  diagrams,  121 

Standard  mashes,  217 

Standard  shape,  mating  for,  504 

Standard-size  boxes  for  dressed  poul- 
try, 322 


6io 


POULTRY  CULTURE 


Standard-size  poultry-house  unit,  1 19 

Standard  style  of  exhibition  coop,  551 

Station,  good  pose,  height,  and  reach 

Steam  power,  effect  of  the  development 
of,  on  the  poultry  industry,  13 

Steaming  to  remove  feathers,  315 

Sterility  and  extreme  heavy  laying,  494 

Stern,  the  posterior  part  of  the  body ; 
used  especially  in  descriptions  of 
Games  in  which,  because  of  the  short- 
ness of  the  plumage,  the  outlines  are 
more  discernible  than  in  long-feath- 
ered birds 

Sticking  poultry,  312  ;  illustrated,  313 

Stippled,  evenly  marked  with  fine  dots 

Stone  poultry  houses,  illustrated,  102 

Strain,  a  family  having  established  race 
character  distinguishing  it  from  other 
stock  of  the  same  variety 

Straw  for  litter,  209 

Strawberry  comb.    See  Comb 

Striped,  marked  lengthwise  with  a  long 
central  stripe.  See  Laced 

Sugar  beets,  198 

Sultans,  425 

Sumatras,  Black,  illustrated,  533 

Sunflower  seed,  194 

Sunlight,  in  houses,  104  ;  importance  of, 
77  ;  testing  eggs  by,  249 

Supply  and  demand,  62 

Surrey  fowl.    See  Sussex  fowls 

Sussex  fowls,  378,  420 

Swans,  458  ;  rations  for,  237 

Sweepstakes  prizes,  548 

Symmetry,  defined,  572 

Symptoms  of  disease,  337 

System,  definition  of,  79 ;  in  natural  in- 
cubation, 243 

Systems  of  mating,  491  ;  of  selection,  481 

Table  poultry,  finishing,   301;    mating 

for,  495  ;  shape  in,  499 
Tail,  the  tail  feathers,  —  main  tail  and 

coverts 

Tailless  fowls,  425 

Tapeworm,  an  intestinal  parasite,  341 
Tassel,  a  small  crest,  especially  applied 

to  Game  fowls 
Telegony,  490 
Temperature,  for  brooding,  275,  280; 

of  broody  hens,  250;  for  incubation, 

241 ;  for  keeping  eggs  for  hatching, 

245;  of  poultry  houses,  104,  116 
Tent  coop,  evolution  of,  illustrated,  105 
Testers?  egg,  171 
Testing  eggs,  248,  259 
Thigh,  the  drumstick,  the  first  fleshy 

joint  of  the  leg  of  a  bird 


Thoroughbred,  having  type  and  breed 
or  variety  characters  well  established 
and  of  high  quality 

Thumb  mark,  a  bulge  in  a  single  t;omb 
immediately  over  the  beak,  as  if 
pressed  out  of  shape  with  the  thumb 

Tick,  a  speck  of  foreign  color ;  also,  a 
rudimentary  stripe 

Ties  in  judging,  573 

Tight  houses,  108 

Tillinghast  house,  illustrated,  1 1 5 

Tolman  house,  illustrated,  115 

Tomatoes,  198 

Tom  turkey,  a  turkey  cock 

Topknot,  a  crest 

Training  birds  for  exhibition,  562 

Transmission,  of  characters,  463 ;  of 
prepotency,  466 

Transportation,  78 

Trio,  a  male  and  two  females ;  applied 
to  birds  selected  for  exhibition  or 
for  breeding 

Troughs,  feed,  163 

Tuck,  to  draw  up ;  applied  to  the  car- 
riage of  the  wing,  which  in  repose 
should  be  closely  folded,  with  points 
tucked  well  into  the  body  feathers  at 
the  rear 

Turkeys,  effects  of  foul  ground  on,  274 ; 
fattening,  305;  growing,  58 ;  nests  for, 
247;  rations  for,  234;  roosting  habits 
of,  130;  varieties  of:  Buff  or  Red,  434  ; 
Black,  432 ;  illustrated,  58 ;  Bronze, 
430 ;  illustrated,  58,  430.  434 ;  Narra- 
gansett,  431;  illustrated,  432;  Slate, 
434  ;  White,  433  ;  illustrated,  58,  433  ; 
Wild,  430 

Turning  eggs  in  incubation,  258 

Twisted  comb,  a  single  comb  that  is 
straight  at  the  base  but  wrinkled  at 
the  margin,  making  the  serrations 
point  in  different  directions 

Twisted  feather,  a  feather  (usually  a 
primary)  having  the  quill  so  turned 
in  the  skin  (or  flesh)  that  it  does  not 
take  its  natural  position.  As  a  rule, 
the  feather  is  straight  but  turned  in 
its  place 

Type,  definition  of,  69 ;  development  of 
American,  16;  egg,  472  ;  of  original 
fowl,  344  ;  regression  from,  475 

Types,  deformed,  424 ;  of  domestic 
fowl,  346  ;  European  meat,  376 ;  gen- 
eral-purpose, 394  ;  laying,  352  ;  primi- 
tive-crested, 375;  relations  of,  to 
conditions  and  methods,  66 

Typhoid,  fowl,  analogous  to  typhoid  in 
human  beings,  339 


INDEX 


Undercolor,  530 

Uniformity  in  judging,  573 

Upham,  D.  A.,  originator  of  the  Barred 
Plymouth  Rock,  398 

Utility  values,  recognition  of,  in  judg- 
ing Standard  poultry,  574 

V  comb.    See  Comb 

Values,  in  exhibition  poultry,  577  ;  of 
poultry  in  the  United  States,  25 

Variability  of  egg  yields,  298 

Variation,  beginning  of,  461  ;  sex,  regu- 
lator of,  461 

Vegetables  in  mashes,  216 

Vent,  the  posterior  orifice 

Vent  gleet,  a  venereal  disease  of  poul- 
try, causing  inflammation  of  the 
cloaca  and  adjacent  parts 

Ventilation,  affected  by  situation,  77  ; 
effect  on  egg  production,  295 ;  in 
incubation,  259 ;  measuring,  262  ;  in 
tight  houses,  1 1 1 

Vigor,  importance  of,  209 

Vitality,  effect  of  laying  on,  494 ;  pres- 
ervation of,  in  young  poultry,  267  ; 
relation  of,  to  fertility,  240 ;  relation 
of,  to  reproduction,  464 

Vulture  hock,  a  hock  having  stiff  feath- 
ers extending  beyond  it,  as  in  a  vulture 

Walks,  raised,  illustrated,  125 
Walls  of  poultry  structures,  125 
Warm  open-front  houses,    114 
Warm  water  and  frostbite,  341 
Warmth,  in  poultry-house  construction, 

128  ;  for  young  poultry,  276 
Washing  exhibition  birds,  559,  563 
Waterfowl,  natural  feeding  habits  of,  177 
Wattle,  one  of  the  two  pendent  folds  of 

skin  at  the  side  of  the  throat  of  a 

fowl ;    also    the    loose    carunculated 

single  fold  of  skin  under  the  throat 

of  a  turkey 

Weaklings,  elimination  of,  260 
Weaning  young  poultry,  time  for,  275 
Weather,   effect  of,    on    shipments    of 

fancy  poultry  and  eggs,  585 
Weber  Brothers'  rations  for  ducks,  236 
Weight,  of  eggs,  327  ;  poultry  sold  by, 

322 
West    Virginia     Experiment     Station, 

poultry  house  at,  illustrated,   141 
West     Virginia     Experiment     Station 

ration,  229 

Wheat,  feeding  value  of,  182 
Whey,  201 

Whiptail,  a  small,  closely  folded  tail 
Whiskers,  muffs 


Whitecomb,  applied  to  favus  when  it 
affects  the  comb 

White  diarrhea,  properly,  the  disease 
caused  by  the  infection  of  new- 
hatched  chickens  with  bacterium  pul- 
lorum.  Erroneously  applied  to  many 
cases  of  common  diarrhea  in  which 
the  discharges  are  at  first  whitish 

White  of  egg,  238 

White  eggs,  326 

White  fowls,  mating,  525 

White-red  color  pattern,  361 

Whitewash,  use  of,  129 

Willow,  willow-colored,  greenish  yel- 
low; applied  in  describing  the  color 
of  the  shanks 

Wing  parts :  wing  bar,  the  bar  across 
the  folded  wing,  formed  by  the  cov- 
erts ;  wing  bay,  the  triangular  surface 
of  the  secondaries  of  the  folded 
wing ;  wing  bow,  the  upper  part  of 
the  wing,  covered  with  small,  soft 
feathers ;  wing  coverts,  the  small 
feathers  which  conceal  the  quills  of 
the  flight  feathers 

Winnebagos,  408 

Wire  fencing,  98 

Wisconsin  Agricultural  College,  poul- 

•     try  houses  at,  illustrated,  81,  117,  145 

Wood,  use  of,  in  construction  of  poul- 
try houses,  126 

Worms,  341 

Wringingtheneck,killingpoultryby,3i2 

Wry  tail,  a  tail  turning  permanently  to 
one  side 

Wyandottes,  406 ;  compared  with  other 
fowls  of  their  class,  420  ;  varieties  of  : 
Black,  illustrated,  410;  Buff,  illus- 
trated, 410;  Columbian,  412;  illus- 
trated, 412,  520  ;  Golden- Laced,  408 ; 
illustrated,  407  ;  Partridge,  411;  illus- 
trated, 512  ;  Silver- Laced,  406  ;  illus- 
trated, 406,  516;  Silver-Penciled, 41 2  ; 
illustrated,  411,  515;  White,  409;  il- 
lustrated, 408,  501-502 

Yard,  area  of,  97  ;  use  of,  95 

Yard,  breeding,  a  male  mated  with  a 
large  number  of  females.  In  buying 
and  selling  fowls  for  breeding  pur- 
poses the  regulation  number  of 
females  in  a  breeding  yard  is  eight, — 
twice  the  number  in  a  pen.  Exhibi- 
tion yard,  a  male  with  more  than 
four  femates,  —  also  called  a  display. 
It  is  not  customary  for  yards  or  dis- 
plays to  compete  for  prizes 

Yolk  of  egg,  238 


